Linque

At noon the next day, Chu Xin and Chu Yan were taken to Ming Cheng Hall by the servants.

The two siblings were very nervous when they got off the carriage. Chu Xin was always careful and cautious. Although Chu Yan had practiced in the Six Departments, he had not been formally appointed as an official, so he was not qualified to face the holy and the dynasties.Mingcheng Hall is the emperor's bedroom, foreign ministers are not allowed to enter without permission, even though they already know the relationship between their elder brother and His Majesty, in their hearts, His Majesty is still an existence above the clouds, holding the life and death honor and disgrace of all people in the world.What I want to meet at this moment is the so-called "sister-in-law", but she is also the master of Dayin Jiuzhou and the emperor of Jiuwu Supreme, so it is inevitable that I feel timid.

It was Zhu Geng who was next to His Majesty to pick up Chu Yan at the Taiwei City official office.Little Eunuch Zhu invited the two of them out of the carriage and led them to Mingcheng Hall.

Chu Heng had already returned from the Hall of Jingcheng to wait for them, just after he took off the emperor's bodyguard uniform and changed into ordinary clothes, the servants came over to report.

When Chu Heng left the inner hall, the maids were serving tea for the siblings, but when Chu Xin and Chu Yan entered the hall, they didn't see His Majesty and elder brother, they were worried and didn't dare to relax.Nodding his head and thanking him, he was about to decline, when he heard a sound from behind the screen——

"sit."

Chu Heng walked over wiping his fingers, handed the brocade handkerchief to the servant beside him, looked at the stiff and nervous younger siblings, and said with a gentle smile, "I have been busy these two days, the ministers and workers of the Palace of Respect have not finished their discussions, you' Sister-in-law' won't be here until later, today he invites you, don't be afraid, sit down and have a cup of tea first."

They could all hear that when brother mentioned His Majesty, his tone was the most intimate and natural, with a bit of teasing and teasing. The title "sister-in-law" is just a joke, and it is really disrespectful to put it on the emperor, but in front of the palace full of maids, my brother said it without hesitation, and no one around thought it was wrong, even Xiao Zhu The father-in-law is smiling.

The anxiety in Chu Xin and Chu Yan's heart subconsciously dissipated a little.

Chu Heng took them to the table and sat down, waited for the maid to bring incense and tea, then turned around and said: "Zhu Geng, go to Yuqian to see if the call is over, if His Majesty is still in the Jingcheng Hall, let him put Bring me my ink green landscape pendant, and leave it there after viewing it in the morning."

Zhu Geng bowed in response, and was just about to go out, when there was a welcoming sound outside the hall, it was the emperor who had returned.

Chu Xin and Chu Yan suddenly became nervous, and hurriedly knelt down to salute with the maid and servant.

Ling Ye brought Mo Cuipei with a tacit understanding, and when he entered the door, he went straight to hand it to Chu Heng, and said: "I said that after admiring it, if you like it, you can tie it on your body directly, so you know you will forget it."

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Chu Xin Chuyan who was bowing his head beside him, turned his head and softened his voice, and said with a slight smile: "Get up, the family banquet is free, don't be nervous and restrained, relax, and sit down."

The siblings bowed their heads to thank each other, and stood up, but the emperor was still standing, how dare they sit down, they only respectfully stood on one side.

"Sit down quickly." Chu Heng waved his hand towards them, but did not accept the jade pendant Ling Ye handed over, and forcefully argued: "Why scold me... Wasn't there a jade pendant already hanging on the belt in the morning... Now This casual shirt doesn't match Mo Cui, His Majesty is so considerate, so he will choose clothes for me this afternoon."

"I'm wronged, how dare I criticize you? Pick and choose, that's fine." Ling Ye smiled with his lips curled up.

"It's almost there."

The servant girl took the jade pendant with great discernment, and put it away in the inner hall properly.

When all the people are here, the meal can be passed on, Father-in-law Gao ordered in a low voice.

Since they were called into the palace to meet, they couldn't be respectful and silent. Of course, the emperor had to come to make a start.

"Ayan—" Ling Ye called out.

Now that the court is in troubled times, King Jing's party feathers have collapsed - all the unfaithful families in the twelve cities in the south of the Yangtze River have been cleaned up, and the Yunzhou clan has become meat on the chopping board - and this has turned the situation in the court upside down. The change only happened within two months after King Jing rebelled.Of course there is the great help of the elder brother, but the emperor's thunderous tactics and strategic layout are really frightening.

All officials in the court, Chinese and military are now most afraid of the relationship between the family and King Jing. Changzhou is a gathering place for aristocratic families, but so what, the twelve cities in the south of the Yangtze River are a lesson from the past!Now there is no decree on how to deal with them, and no one knows what will happen in the future. Killing chickens to scare monkeys is frightening, and everyone in the court is trembling.

Chu Yan is currently practicing in the Six Departments. Although there is nothing wrong with the Zhongli Chu family, people around him are panicked. He inevitably followed these things with caution and faced these things head-on. He has a deep understanding of "thunder, rain and dew", and is even more afraid of the emperor.And the person in front of him who jokingly called them "sister-in-law" talked intimately and naturally with his elder brother, and treated them with a pleasant face, so gentle and easy, far away from the "life and death" emperor in his heart. He couldn't help but think again of the "Brother Gu" he met two years ago...

Chu Yan was so nervous that he was in a daze when suddenly a soft call of "A Yan" came from his ear. He subconsciously looked up and saw that it was "Brother Gu"... No, Chu Yan bit the tip of his tongue and blurted out in a hurry, But he yelled out the word "sister-in-law", and as soon as the words fell, Chu Yan's face turned pale.

Great disrespect!

Chu Xin's sitting body trembled, and the hand holding the brocade handkerchief under the sleeve was pinched tightly for a moment, and the tips of the nails were pinched white.

Chu Yan was about to leave his seat and kowtow to plead guilty almost immediately.

But at this time, my brother laughed out loud.

"En." The offended emperor actually nodded in response.

Chu Yan still knelt down, his face was flushed, his earlobe seemed to be congested with blood, but a layer of cold sweat was condensed on his back, and he whispered: "Your Majesty forgive me for my mistake."

"Get up." Sheng Yan was still happy, Ling Ye spoke softly, and said with a smile: "What's the tension at the family banquet, you are not allowed to salute today, besides, it's not a mistake, huh?" He looked sideways with a half-smile Xiang Chuheng stretched out his fingers to caress the queen's waist.

The smirk on Chu Heng's face faltered, and he felt uncomfortable when he met Ling Ye's meaningful gaze.

Chu Yan thanked En and got up and returned to her seat.

Chu Xin breathed a sigh of relief, and quietly looked at the two people facing each other who were arguing with each other, and felt a little less uneasy when they came.

Ling Ye turned his head and looked at Chu Yan again, and asked, "Are you practicing in the Ministry of Punishment now?"

Chu Yan should say, "I entered the Ministry of Criminal Justice in March this year to study law."

"Yeah." Ling Ye nodded, "That's almost four months..."

The Fang family of Cangwu stood in high-profile line to respect the king. Fang Hao, the former minister of the Ministry of Punishment, took leave of absence on the grounds of his mother's sickness when the heads of the various families came to Beijing to report their duties in March this year, and returned to Yunzhou with Cangwu Wuzun Fang Hongzhen.

Later, when King Jing conspired to rebel and start a war, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment naturally changed, but the Ministry of Punishment had been suppressed by Dali Temple a few years ago, and only cared about drafting laws and reviewing prison proceedings.

At the beginning of this year, Han Chengmiao, a close minister of the emperor, officially conferred an official in Dali Temple, and served as Lu Mian, the Minister of Dali Temple.Han Chengmiao is the eldest son of the Han family in Yuyang. Although he is young, he has great status. Looking at it now, it is clear that this move is to prepare for the aristocratic family of the faction who respects the king. It may be a big discussion.Although the Lu family in Wujiang is also a famous family, they are not among the sixteen families after all. Lu Mian is sometimes difficult to deal with, but the Han family in Yuyang is different. The weight is right, his elder son Han Chengmiao went to Dali Temple, he can "weight the scales" and won't steal Lu Mian's power, which is very suitable.In this way, the Ministry of Punishment will be even more speechless, but the new Zhao Shangshu is a person who does not fight or grab, and he is happy to make up for it. ①

Chu Yan is now in the Ministry of Punishment for training. He usually studies laws and decrees, reads criminal files, and sometimes follows Shangfeng to review prison lawsuits. It is not very busy.On the other hand, his future brother-in-law, Han Chengmiao, heard that the case of clinging to the rebellious party in the twelve cities in the south of the Yangtze River has already begun. Although Dali Temple has been very popular recently, it is a waste of money to stay up day and night.

Ling Ye thought about it for a while, and said, "Ah Yan, take advantage of the last few days at the end of the month to hand over the work of the Ministry of Punishment at hand, and go to the Ministry of War to learn in August."

Most of the descendants of the descendants of the famous families of the Fan family have studied in the six departments of official, household, ritual, military, punishment, and engineering to get familiar with the affairs of the court, and sometimes they will go to the Nine Temples to see.Among them, the experience of the Ministry of War is the most special. For the other five departments, even if they are in the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which is in charge of the assessment and transfer of civil servants, they can learn more or less about the exams.

Only in the Ministry of War.

Dayin emphasizes martial arts, the Privy Council and the Ministry of War have always been firmly controlled by the emperor, and the selection of military officers and military officers is a major event. How can an important weapon of the country be allowed to be touched by an outsider who came to experience it?So when these aristocratic lineages came here, most of them drank tea, practiced martial arts and read military books, and were politely hung up for a few months, just going through the motions.

But if it is sent by the emperor, it will be different. The generals will treat you as half of their own, and teach you to be familiar with military affairs and military affairs.

Chu Heng glanced at Ling Ye upon hearing this.

Over there, Chu Yan was stunned by the pie that suddenly fell from the sky. After realizing it, he quickly got up and thanked him.

Ling Ye raised his hand and stopped, "Sit."

He also half-jokingly said: "In the Ministry of War, you have to work hard to make progress. The generals are all masters of martial arts, and they can show as much skill as they have, otherwise I'm afraid I will lose your brother."

Chu Yan's ears were red, and he nodded.

Ling Ye looked at the young man without arrogance or impetuosity, which is very good, he smiled slightly.

……

While talking, the serving lady led the servants to arrange the meal, and the table was filled with delicacies.

It can be seen that the "sister-in-law" is very attentive to the banquet. On the right hand of Chu Yan is a piece of exquisite peony bream and a piece of fish in milk soup. Chu Xin's dishes are more delicate and diverse, such as sweet snowflake peach puree and glutinous rice candy. Lotus root, light and delicious shrimp and rice stems, raw Yuyao, slightly spicy beef with tangerine peel, and even two Zhongli local hometown dishes.

Ling Ye smiled and said: "I only know that Ah Yan likes to eat fish, but I don't know your taste. Your brother doesn't eat with you very often. I think you are about the same age as Yang Jia, and that girl sometimes likes to eat fish." Sweet, I like spicy food but I’m afraid of it. One day I got a red spot on my face and shouted to avoid it. In short, there is no stereotype, but I have everything. The girl’s taste may be similar, so I asked someone to buy it It’s over. Let the maidservant serve you. If you don’t like it, you can remove it. Don’t accommodate. You are the only girl on the table, and we are the only ones following you.”

Chu Xin blushed, nodded and said yes.

Chu Yan thought for a while, and boldly said in a low voice: "Sister is similar, she likes sweet and spicy food."

"That's just right," Ling Ye laughed, "We can make a table with Yang Jia. That girl has the most demands. During family banquets in the palace, I have to ask her what she wants to eat first, but the dishes I ordered are really all the same. Pay attention."

Chu Heng asked: "Did Yang Jia go back to the food town of Yuezhou with her aunt after the next year?"

"Well." Ling Ye said, "My uncle went back to worship the ancestors. Later, the garrison in Yuezhou was transferred, and my aunt's town was convenient, so I was not in a hurry to return to Beijing, but it will be soon."

Chu Heng nodded, suddenly remembered something, couldn't help laughing and said: "I'm afraid that the girl didn't even like the emperor, so why don't you run back to Yuezhou to pick and choose?"

Mentioning the fact that the chief of Yangjia County was looking for a county horse for him, Ling Ye shook his head: "Who knows her, after two years of yelling, I don't know who to fall in love with. Anyway, there is no rush, she is the princess of the Tianjia County, take your time." Just pick and choose, but worry about not being able to find Mr. Ruyi. My aunt and uncle love her, and I want to stay for a few more years. I don’t need anyone, I want her to like her first. I wrote a letter a few days ago, and said on a whim When the war is over, I want to go to Ningzhou to play, and I have to find a good Ningzhou disciple to lead the way, begging me to give her grace, I don’t know what to do.”

"Ningzhou?" Chu Heng raised the corners of his lips, "I think it's because my uncle and aunt shut me up at home, I have nothing to do to read travel notes and saw Ningzhou, so I want to go?"

Chu Heng laughed, "However, the scenery in Ningzhou is really good. Yiye Gucheng, Nanshan Buddhist Temple, Sui'an City, the food city of Princess Qinghe, and even Zhongli City, the head of the Chu family... Well, there are many interesting places. If you want to go, just give me grace, besides the 'leader' she picked, you can also let Qing and the eldest princess go with you, and it's good to relax together. With Qing and this big sister around, there will be no mistakes."

Ling Ye thought for a while, then nodded and said "Yes".

……

The atmosphere of this family banquet became better after eating. His Majesty and his elder brother were intimate and natural, and they were always gentle and gentle with them, gradually relaxing Chu Xin and Chu Yan's heartstrings.

Until after lunch, the siblings tacitly did not mention the Hou Mansion in front of the elder brother.

These days, Zhong Pinghou is embarrassing on the outside because of this Dongjun's son.This is just the beginning. In the future, as Dong Jun shows up in front of people for a longer time, he never enters the door of the Hou Mansion, and the suspicions of others will follow one after another, which will make this embarrassment deeper and deeper until he can no longer hide it. .

But Chu Xin and Chu Yan didn't say anything about it, just like Chu Heng would not ask his younger siblings to betray Zhong Pinghou because of the blame he had suffered in the past, and Chu Xin and Chu Yan would not ask their younger siblings to betray Zhong Pinghou because of their father's 20 years of childbearing. En, but asked my brother to reconcile with his father.Zhong Pinghou has blame and disregard for Chu Heng, and also nurtures and loves for Chu Xin and Chu Yan. There are cracks that are hard to repair, and fatherly love is hard to give up. He can do things wherever he is, and that's fine.

Before leaving, Ling Ye asked someone to bring the prepared meeting gifts. Chu Xin was given Bu Yao Hua Sheng and Rouge Xianglu, and Chu Yan was given a jade pendant with a hook and a finger pull. They must not let them scream for nothing "sister in law".

However, after Eunuch Zhu sent off his younger siblings, His Majesty will discuss this matter with the Queen.

"Sister-in-law, right?" Ling Ye smiled half-smile, took Chu Heng's hand and walked into the inner room, "Come, let me serve brother."

"..."

Chu Heng shook his body, and immediately felt the danger, so hurry up and make up for it!

"Husband! Husband is alright, it's still daytime, and I'll teach Ayan Jingxing how to practice swords this afternoon..."

While being dragged towards the bed by Ling Ye, he woke up, racking his brains to find reasons for himself.

But the strength of the Sacred Heart, how can it be easily changed——

"This is just the beginning of Zamabu, so you have to go there in person, and the officials of the East Palace will arrange it. Does it mean that my brother is slowing down because he doesn't like to be in the inner room? Then I'll go outside and hug my brother under the flower tree." .”

"do not!……"

For a while, she was joking with Ah Xin and Ah Yan, and she missed it. As a sister-in-law, she can't care about her younger siblings, so she can only make up for it from her elder brother.

The afternoon sun was shining brightly, my brother was stripped naked by his sister-in-law, pressed under him, tossed and turned and ruthlessly ravaged.

……

The hearty love affair was over, Chu Heng's eyes were red, and she was lying in Ling Ye's arms panting, and when her breathing gradually calmed down, she suddenly remembered, raised her head and asked, "By the way, you asked Ah Yan to go to the Ministry of War to learn, is it true?" Want to send him to practice on the East China Sea battlefield?"

——Nanyang Zeguo Navy occupies the southeast waters of Dayin, and this battle to expel foreign enemies must be fought to the end.

Ling Ye embraced Chu Heng, wrapped his fingertips around a strand of his hair, and played with it carefully. Hearing this, he said "yes", "There is a 17-year-old brother who entered the Mahayana, how can the younger brother's talent be worse?"

"Where is your brother's skill? The aristocratic family is different from the poor family who have no conditions. The children of the sixteenth aristocratic family, especially the direct descendants, in addition to the collection of classics and history, have to learn martial arts and art of war from an early age, so that they can join the army at any time. This is the foundation of the aristocratic family. It is also the key to the succession of titles. Even if Shen Yingbai's poetry is as prosperous as Yanhe Shen's, Shen Yingbai's health is not good, but his cousin's martial arts attainments are not bad at all."

"You have learned the art of war since you were a child in Lishan Mountain. Your two juniors, Ye Shuli and Ye Xinghui, are like ducks in water in the Changzhou battle. It is one thing to develop contacts in the court. How can there be a family who does not want to touch the important weapon?" What about it? It’s just that there is no joke in the army, so it depends on whether you are willing to let Ah Yan go.” Ling Ye chuckled lightly.

"Hmm..." Chu Heng adjusted his posture, found a more comfortable position and lay down in Ling Ye's arms, and said, "There's nothing to be reluctant about. Shuli, Xinghui, which one do you see I stop? In terms of talent, Ah Yan is not much worse than the two of them, but he has concerns not to show off too much, so let him go."

"Although the Zhongli Chu family has nothing to do with me, Ah Yan still grew up in the Chu family after all. The Hou family of Zhongping is wise and safe, and he is used to making peace with each other, but he has no two-hearted intentions. The eldest son of the Hou family, Chu Chen, was really taught by my father. Thinking of Zhongli Chu's family being good, he is quite peaceful, but he won't be like his mother-in-law, stumbling over Ah Yan. In fact, Ah Yan is also assertive, anyway, he won't inherit Zhongpinghou's mansion, and in the end he will He has to stand on his own, relying on himself."

"That's why I asked you." Ling Ye said, "Taking advantage of the battle situation in the East China Sea, send Ayan there, and accumulate some military merits so that he can be close to him in the future. It’s different, and it’s easier to enter the Privy Council in the future, and none of the governors or co-governors in the Privy Council has any real military merits, and the titles and rewards also come from this.”

Chu Heng smiled: "That's still far away."

Ling Ye bent his lips and said nothing, he hugged him, and basked in the sunlight that leaked into the inner room for a while, then he opened his eyes and asked again: "It will be your birthday in half a month, what do you want?"

"Huh? Oh yes, it's the Mid-Autumn Festival. There must be a lot of presents for your birthday this year. As for you, let me think about it..." Chu Heng stood up and pondered for a while, but he couldn't think of anything.

He looked down at the person in front of him - nothing was missing.

So he stretched out his hand and touched Ling Ye's chin teasingly, "With a beautiful daughter-in-law like you, what do I want?"

Ling Ye raised his eyebrows lightly, and looked back at the brazen person.

In other words, who is the flower?

It seems that the watering of the flowers just now is not thorough enough, one time won't work, and I have to continue to irrigate a second time.

So the gardener hugged Shanhua's waist, rolled it into the couch, and started the second plowing in the afternoon.

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① Dali Temple tried the family members of King Jing's faction, and tried the case of the twelve cities in the south of the Yangtze River. I wrote it, and I wrote a little reason in Chapter 00 Balance.