Linque

On the twenty-second day of the winter moon, Prince Jing Ling Yi and Princess Zhong Yiyun arrived in the imperial capital.

Early the next morning, King Jing handed Zhezi into the palace to have an audience with him, and the emperor agreed.

When King Jing came out of the Jingcheng Hall, he happened to meet Gao Bandit leading a female officer in Shangfu to come from outside.Bandit Gao met King Jing face to face, and quickly bent down to salute.

He has been serving the emperor since he was a child. No matter how old the emperor is, Gao Bandit has been serving him for as long as possible. He has always had two points of face in front of princes and ministers, and he is called "Gao Zhang Dian" politely.

No matter what King Jing thinks in his heart, he can't let him really kneel and kowtow in front of Jingcheng Hall.What's more, the leader of the bandit Gao was a female officer in Shangfu holding a dragon robe.

Of course the dragon robe cannot kneel.

Therefore, the female officer in Shangfu still stood upright, nodding her head in courtesy.

Kesi court gowns were stacked neatly in the tray, and a majestic five-clawed golden dragon pattern was exposed on the front of the clothes, showing who its owner was.

You don't need to look at Ling Yi to know what the clothes look like when they are unfolded - black as the base, bright gold embroidered, the twelve chapters that belonged exclusively to the emperor are inlaid on the upper and lower skirts, Zhenglong is embroidered on the front and back, and on the sleeves and shoulders.

This dress was once the desire of all their princes.

But now the people sitting on the dragon chair in the Hall of Respect and Sincerity have always been a mountain on everyone's heads. Among these people, including the late emperor's eldest brother King Qi, he was also included.

They are also the sons of the first emperor, but because Ling Ye's mother is Gu Huiyin, the empress of the Yuan Dynasty, he was born nobler than all other princes.

In the past, he was a prince, he was called an orphan, and they had to be called ministers.

Now he is the emperor, he calls me, and they have to call me ministers.

Ling Yi's eyes flicked over the tray held by the female officer in Shangfu, concealing the darkness in his eyes, he kept saying that he was not polite, and smiled and helped the high gangster in vain.

After exchanging a few words of pleasantries, King Jing glanced at the courteous female officer full of teasing, until the female officer couldn't help lowering her head in embarrassment, and then she turned her gaze to the direction of the Palace of Compassion and Harmony.

When he stepped out of the Chongji Gate, the cynicism in Ling Yi's eyes quickly faded away. He glanced sideways at the magnificent palace in the distance. The three characters written in gold powder on the plaque reflected the majestic and arrogant brilliance under the skylight. Generals, royals, nobles, common people, all Kyushu, big and small, knelt at the feet of these three words——

Hall of Respect and Sincerity.

Bandit Gao bowed and stepped into the hall. The emperor had a calm face and was standing behind the imperial case and writing with a brush. The strokes on the Xuelang paper were the simplest words, horizontal and vertical.Gao Bandit only took one look and guessed that this was a copybook for His Highness.

When the Spring Festival begins, Qingyan will be four years old, and it's time to start learning to hold a pen and learn to write.

Gao Bandit has served the emperor for twenty years, and he knows best that His Majesty's handwriting has been studied hard in the past. The silver hook, jade spit and luan return to the phoenix dance, which is extremely good, but it is also difficult to imitate.Pen force, will, and state of mind are all indispensable, and the words that write down the mountains and rivers like that can't be practiced in ten or eight years.

But His Majesty seldom writes such a magnificent and vigorous style of writing.On weekdays, the imperial pens and verdicts on the memorials are all strict and neat, broad and peaceful.Occasionally, when writing something in private, His Majesty likes to use lower case letters, to suppress the imperial majesty, and the writing is only indifferent and simple.

But looking back at the copybook on the table, there are none of the three kinds of brushwork—it is not a calligraphy specially given by the emperor to show the importance he attaches to the prince; nor is it the "grace" given by the emperor to the prince; A father made a copybook for his young son who was about to learn calligraphy, so he used the brushwork suitable for children and chose the most suitable characters for children.

This kind of heart is rare in Jiuzhongque.

But for the emperor in front of him, it should have been even more rare.

Ling Ye finished writing the last word, put down the pen, and wiped his hands with the handkerchief Gao Bandit handed over.Today King Jing entered the palace to see him, and by the way, he wanted to greet the Queen Mother, and he was already on his way to the Palace of Mercy.

Ling Ye knew exactly what it meant for the mother and son to meet.

At the beginning of the seventh year of Xuanxi, the dust fell temporarily, and King Jing went to Shiyi.Wanzhou Jiangjin City is located on the edge of the Lanjiang River, sitting on the best port in the upper reaches of the Lanjiang River. Wuhuatianbao, outstanding people and spirits, was bestowed on King Jing by the late emperor, just like his title - "Jing".

Ling Ye raised his eyes and looked towards the entrance of the main hall expressionlessly. The sky was shining in front of the hall, and the ground was full of brilliance. The former emperor stood there back then and gave Ling Yi the title.

The word "respect" does not mean respect.

Ling Ye was also there when the first emperor was drafting the title, and the Ministry of Rites submitted a list of auspicious and wishful words.

Time has passed, and it is difficult for Ling Ye to recall how he felt at that time, sour?panic?Maybe not, he just silently watched his father stand in front of the gate of Jingcheng Hall, pointed to the plaque written with gold powder, and said, "I think that one is pretty good."

So I picked the word "respect" from it.

The Hall of Jingcheng has always been the place where the emperor asked about politics. The title of "Jing" in the Hall of Jingcheng caused a sensation in the court hall no less than when the first emperor named Qi King.

"Qi" is the name of the country in ancient times. Among the titles of princes, there is nothing more precious than the four characters "Qin, Jin, Qi and Chu".In the hundreds of years since the founding of Dayin, only a few brothers who conquered the world with Taizu at the founding of the country had to seal these words. Later, it appeared for the second time in the history of Dayin, and it was in the reign of the first emperor.

The first emperor finally chose the word "Qi". The king of Qi was originally the eldest son.Qi is equal, so King Qi and Ling Ye, the prince, are equal.

As the crown prince, he has had a difficult time, and he is really grateful to his father.

The first emperor speciously gave many sons the hope of Yuji Kyushu, just to let them fight to choose the real heir.

At the same time, he used the technique of balancing with one hand. When he was canonized as the king of Qi, Ling Ye was eight years old, just at the age of learning calligraphy, so the next day after he was made king, the emperor gave him a royal brush and ink treasure to show his respect for the prince. Pay attention to.

It's just that the calligraphy in that picture is so powerful that Ling Ye couldn't write well at first.He understood from a very early age that the crown prince's position was tied to his own life, so he dared not let his father be disappointed in him.So I turned on the lamp every night to practice, stroke by stroke, until my fingers were sore and I could hardly hold the pen, and I still had to continue.Don't dare to stop, can't stop——

That was the grace bestowed by the emperor, and he was not allowed to learn it.

These princes, they were called "children" in front of the late emperor, but they had never felt the love of their father, and none of them dared to be self-willed in front of the late emperor.Like the princes and princes under the throne, they have always been just ministers, and the "son" just gave everyone the qualification to compete for the throne.

It's a pity that the first emperor died young, and these qualifications later became the source of disasters, and became the gully in the mountains and rivers of Kyushu, which he, the new emperor, had to fill up with his own hands.

"Your Majesty, King Jing has gone to the Empress Dowager. Do you want to send someone to watch quietly at the Palace of Compassion..."

"No need," Ling Ye interrupted Gao Bandit's words, and said lightly: "I think I know what we will talk about. At the Xuanzheng Palace Grand Meeting two days ago, I said that next year we will open Enke—"

Cihe Palace, Ningshou Palace.

Empress Dowager Zhong hadn't seen her son in the past two years, so she couldn't hide her excitement. When King Jing went to see the emperor in the Hall of Respect, Princess Jing Zhong Yiyun came to accompany her first.When King Jing came over, the mother and son greeted each other and reminisced about the old days. After half an hour, they began to talk about serious matters.

There was no one left in the palace, the Cihe Palace was the Queen Mother's territory, and the people waiting outside the inner hall were the old people who served her when she was a concubine or empress, so naturally she didn't have to worry about the emperor's eyeliner, and she didn't have so many scruples about speaking.

"At the Great Court Meeting two days ago, the emperor said in the name of celebrating Ai's family's longevity, that the whole world will celebrate together, and that next spring will add Enke." The queen mother wiped the lid of the teacup and said calmly.

"What did you say at the court meeting?" King Jing asked.

"What else can I say?" The Empress Dowager said: "Blessed benevolence, be the same as Haiyu', this is the emperor's original words, he put the flag of 'filial piety' in front, full of ministers and ministers, who can say it 'Not coming?"

"When the imperial court was over that day, people from the subordinates sent word that the emperor held the Ai family high in the Xuanzheng Hall, and that the Empress Dowager would bless the world forever. These words are so beautiful. What can the Ai family say? I have to think of him well! After all, to open Enke and promote education, this is a 'great merit' granted by the emperor to the Ai family, and it is a great deed of Enze Kyushu!"

The Qianqiu court banquet failed to be held in the Zichen Palace as expected, and now my birthday is still used by the emperor as a name for the imperial examination, which invisibly fulfilled the emperor's wishes, and the queen mother was naturally full of anger.

At the beginning of the founding of Dayin, he selected scholars based on merit.The aristocratic family is powerful, with nine-rank talents, and the upper third class has always been only from the gentry.

Decades ago, Emperor Lie reformed the system, and under the premise of ensuring that the top-ranking lineages of all aristocratic families can be admitted to official positions, and that three tribute students can be exempted from the hospital examination, state examination, and general examination, and go directly to the palace examination, the imperial examination was held every three years. Set Mingjing Jinshi Division.From the side of the Kangzhuang Avenue lined with aristocratic families, a small path to "climb to the Heavenly Son Hall" is abruptly opened for the poor students from all over the world.

But this small path has robbed the interests of the aristocratic family after all, and it is very difficult to open, and every step is full of obstacles.There are only so many positions in the DPRK and the Central Committee, and some of them are allocated to poor families, and the seats of the nobles will be squeezed out.

The imperial examinations have only been conducted for three generations of emperors. Emperor Lie opened the imperial examinations in his later years. After the first emperor's reign, there were constant obstacles in the middle. When Ling Ye succeeded to the throne and the Empress Dowager ruled the government for a few years, the shadow of the imperial examinations almost disappeared.As soon as the emperor took office, the first thing he did was to reopen the scientific examination, and now he even added Enke under a different name.

It was obviously the most difficult task, yet he was asked to do it.

The families behind the emperor are really willing to fully support the imperial examination.

At the Xuanzheng Palace that day, Han Zhuo, the doctor of Lantai Yushi, took the lead. His father, Han Guogong, was called a "sage of learning" by the world. Anyone who saw him had to bow and bow and call him "teacher".In their eyes, the imperial examination is a great merit that will last for thousands of years and benefit scholars all over the world.

As soon as Han Zhuo's words came out, Duke Ying Su Que followed closely.Su Quelong had two sons in total. The eldest son was weak and stayed in Yinghai, while the second son, Su Lang, was from the same family as the emperor. In the future, when the old guys retire, there will be a place for him at Shangshutai.Yinghai is prosperous, it is said that the Su family is as rich as an enemy country, and the government of Yingguo enjoys the right to open sea and trade in Yinghai City. Dayin will not die, and the Su family will not decline. Of course they are willing to follow the emperor.

As for the Northern Gu family who spoke out later, it was the emperor's mother clan and a family with military power, and the imperial examinations did not hinder them at all.The emperor had long brought them together with the prince, and the Gu family never said "no" to what the emperor wanted to do.

The Empress Dowager had an abacus in her heart. These three surnames were the most distinguished family in Kyushu, and they were also the mainstay under the emperor's seat. As soon as they expressed their attitude, Chaozhong Qingliu followed closely.Judging by the emperor's posture, he really wanted to carry on the will of Emperor Lie and carry out the imperial examination to the end.

However, it has been several decades since the imperial examinations have taken officials, but there is no name for it. Among the officials selected, most of them have been sent to some remote corner.Except for Yan Mao, Qin Fang, the magistrate of Anfan City, had the best official career in the imperial examination, but he still couldn't get into the land in the imperial capital.

Yan Mao is a unique exception. He said that he passed the imperial examination, but he was born in the Yan family of Tanchuan, and he was a closed disciple of Master Han.Besides, back then, Yan Mao's backer was Queen Chengde Gu Huiyin.

When Empress Dowager Zhong thought of this name, her heart was full of unwillingness and deep hatred.She was married into the mansion by the first emperor Longqian, but Gu Huiyin came from behind.Her son is also a serious son, and he even got the title of "Jing", so why does he have to be overwhelmed by Gu Huiyin's son?

Fortunately, Gu Huiyin finally raised a white-eyed wolf. In the years when the Queen Mother was in power, although Yan Mao always sang against her, but now, he is also a river in front of Ling Ye. The root of the curse.

Thinking of this, the Empress Dowager felt relieved, and a deep smile appeared on her face.

The Empress Dowager came from a decent family, and the gentry and the common people governed under the same roof. In her eyes, it was a breach of etiquette.

After thinking about the matter of the Xuanzheng Palace, he immediately smiled coldly: "What are the people elected by the imperial examination? A group of low-ranking common people who have only read two books. They have no connections and no vision. Foresight, how can you govern the country? The emperor is young, and the foundation of the aristocratic family, how can he pry at will? The emperor of the iron family and flowing water, you wait first, he is not sensible, and someone in the court will teach him."

The implication is obvious, the emperor is stubborn and can't teach, so some people know to choose the master.

King Jing did not refute.

The queen mother felt more at ease, put down the teacup, and began to ask about the assassination of the crown prince by Helantuo, the holy son of Yujiang. It's just the rules.

Just mentioning this, it is inevitable to talk about Jing Xueli who has a subtle attitude.Zhong Yiyun was sitting next to King Jing, Jing Xueli was her master after all, after the night talk in An Fancheng that day, she still hadn't forgotten the feeling of being angered by King Jing in Bieyuan, and now she couldn't help feeling anxious.

The empress dowager sitting at the top also sullenly.

The Zhong family of Yanxi and Wu Xinghai of Nanxi are considered family friends. Jingxueli arrived in the imperial capital on Dongyue [-]th, and it is now [-], it has been four or five days, but she has not come to see her.

On the twenty-first day, Jing Xueli had a fight with Lishan Dongjun in the Mingzheng Martial Arts Hall, and went to the jewelry store in the imperial capital that afternoon, and yesterday I heard that he went to the Plum Garden in the suburbs of Beijing to look at flowers, quite leisurely .

It can be seen that this great witch is not busy at all, but he just doesn't come to meet him.She is Nanxi Guoshi, so the queen mother couldn't announce her, so she only posted a post to Jing Xueli under the name of the Winter Festival on the [-]th day.

King Jing had already been mentally prepared for this, and he was no longer angry at the moment. Each took what he needed, and Jing Xueli was just adding to it. The important thing was that the covenant between him and Helan Tuo had been completed.

It's night, Yi'an Temple on the outskirts of the imperial capital.

Seven days had passed since the sixteenth day of Dongyue, and the wound on Helan Tuo's shoulder, which was pierced by a wooden stick, was still deeply visible.That day he was wounded and bled into a coma, and was taken away by people who respected the king, and he woke up in this dark room.

He was healed by a man covered from head to toe in a black cloak.

The method is rough.

But Helando couldn't resist.

He could feel that this person whose face was completely covered by a mask and whose fingers were hidden in gloves was the same as Lishan Junji Wuyue, which brought him a deep sense of oppression.

Mahayana, and unknown.

It's not the five known to Dayin, he is the sixth person hidden in the shadows.

The door of the dark room was suddenly opened, and a person walked in from the outside.The cold wind of the night poured in, and Helando, who was sitting on the bed, couldn't help shivering.

"You're a little careless. This is the imperial capital, not Jiang Jincheng." The black-robed man spoke without turning his head, his voice was low and he couldn't distinguish between men and women.

King Jing took off the veiled cap on his head and said with a light smile, "To show my sincerity, this king has come here to send the Holy Son off."

Helando looked surprised.

The man in black said indifferently: "Leaving at midnight tonight, I will send you back to Yujiang from Qianyong City in Qingzhou."

Helantuo was startled, the Duke of Dayin was assassinated, the whole line within [-] miles of Gyeonggi was under martial law, and the borders of the four directions were closed, now he was lucky to find a hiding place, he poked his head and said hesitantly: "Can you really send me? The four gates of the imperial capital are guarded by your emperor's shadow guards, even if it is disguised, it is difficult to hide it from them."

"Can't hide it? That's just because what they encountered were all low-level people." The black-robed man glanced at him, and said with a sneer: "What's more, there is no pass of Yongzhen mountains and rivers, so I can't stop me."

Helan Tuo's face became serious, he thought for a while, and stopped talking.

King Jing said: "I also ask the Holy Son not to forget the agreement between you and me when he arrives in Yujiang."

Helantuo clenched his fists and nodded solemnly: "I swear to the true god, as long as your people send me back to Yujiang, I will immediately cooperate with the Beidi Thirteenth Division to help you restrain the Shuozhou iron cavalry and Jingqing Er as long as your people send me back to Yujiang State Garrison."

King Jing clapped his hands and smiled: "In the future, this king will send the Dihuan Sutra to your king's tent."

The covenant is made.

The man in the dark cloak sat quietly aside, his gaze swept between the two of them. The tightly fitted mask covered his face and concealed all the expressions on his face.

***

The twenty-sixth day of the winter month was a warm sunny day, and the Empress Dowager held a winter festival at Yichun Garden in Shanglin.

The so-called Winter Festival is a banquet held routinely in the palace before and after the winter solstice. At that time, all the princes and girls from the royal families of the imperial capital will be invited to attend.It is said to be a banquet, but it is actually a gathering of nobles from aristocratic families to have fun, and by the way, they also meet each other and marry each other.

At the beginning of Dayin's founding of the dynasty, the family with sixteen surnames was the cornerstone of the stability of the dynasty, and it was common for the royal family to contact the various governments. The winter festival meeting was a custom handed down from that time.

Chu Heng didn't intend to go at first, but Ye Shuli insisted on dragging him. Ye Shuli came to the imperial capital to marry a wife. Of course, he couldn't miss the Winter Festival, so he wanted to recruit Chu Heng to be his adviser.

"Come with me, maybe we can join in the fun and meet His Majesty to choose a noble concubine."

"Choose a concubine?"

Ye Shuli nodded, and said as a matter of course: "Isn't that what people say? If there is no queen, there must be a noble concubine. Anyway, I can't be without a companion forever."

Chu Heng's heart suffocated, and suddenly he felt uncomfortable.

Of course he knew that the emperor should marry a concubine.

However, he just didn't want to, and he felt conflicted the first time he heard the word.I don't want to see someone else beside His Majesty, no matter who it is, as long as I stand beside that person named "Ling Ye", I can't do it.

As soon as this idea popped up, he himself was taken aback, it could be called outrageous.

But after forcing himself to calm down, instead of suppressing the unruly seed, it was still clamoring to germinate in the bottom of his heart. In a blink of an eye, it grew into a towering tree, filling his whole heart to its fullest.

Full of unwillingness.

And it's still sour, and I don't know what kind of strange tree it is.

He suddenly wanted to go to the Winter Festival to see if there would really be such a "noble concubine" emerging from the crowd.

Just as Chu Heng was thinking in this way, Rong Shan, the vice-commander of the Son of Heaven's Shadow Guards, happened to come to Luyuan holding a post.

In fact, what Ye Shuli said was right, no matter whether the emperor had such thoughts or not, there were quite a few families in various families who took advantage of the opportunity of the Winter Festival to inquire about the emperor's wishes.The emperor's harem has been vacant for a long time, after all, it is not plausible, even the elders in the clan are anxious about this matter.

For example, the elder sister of the same mother of the first emperor, Princess Changning, after the death of Empress Chengde, Ling Ye received a lot of care from this aunt.As soon as the Empress Yuan left, there was a new successor in the palace, and the prince became a thorn in the side of others.Princess Dachang knew that the first emperor was weak in the relationship between father and son and could not be counted on. She had a good relationship with Queen Chengde before, so she naturally felt sorry for Huiyin's child.

Fortunately, all kinds of difficulties have been overcome, and the eldest princess finally finished worrying about the change of imperial power, and began to worry about the emperor's marriage.

She knew that the emperor was thinking of Qingyan in his heart, so at the beginning of the winter festival, before the emperor and the queen mother came, the eldest princess took advantage of the time when the noble daughters of the family came to pay her respects, and held Qingyan in her arms , asked him quietly: "Ah Yan, be good, tell my aunt, is there anyone you like among the people I just met?"

Qing Yan lay in his aunt's arms and moaned twice, but didn't say anything.

The eldest princess was worried, suddenly felt that the one in front of her, as well as his father, were all here to collect debts from her.

Qing Yan rolled in her arms for a while, and while his father was away and no one was watching, he turned around and began to eat the small desserts on the table.The eldest princess was afraid that he would choke, so she ordered someone to pour a cup of milk tea over.

Qingyan happily ate two pieces of snacks, and gulped down a small cup of sweet tea. When he raised his head from the bowl, he just saw the person walking in from the gate of the garden, and his two round eyes lit up immediately.

As soon as Chu Hengfu stepped into the gate of the garden, he began to look for Ling Ye's figure, but he didn't want to glance into the garden, and unexpectedly saw his sister Chu Xin sitting in front of Jingxue with her head bowed under the plum blossom tree not far away. .

Chu Heng's eyes suddenly turned cold.

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"Benevolence and blessings should be the same as Haiyu." The reference is from the ancient imperial decree.