Chapter 32: Xin En

After this incident, the entire palace was silent. The death of Xianhuang and his aunt's stroke made his father deeply saddened, and his resentment against his aunt disappeared. After a series of calamities, his father seemed to have no more enthusiasm for power, and his hostility to Xiao Yue also eased a lot. In these successive battles, we have lost too many loved ones, and we are all exhausted. We can no longer bear to continue to hurt the people around us.
In the end, blood is thicker than water, bones and flesh are connected, and no matter how deep the gap between loved ones, there is always a day to go.
However, those good old days are gone forever, and there is an eternal gap between me and them. My father will never treat me as a girl under his wings, and will never spoil me and protect me as before. Now in his eyes, I am the daughter of Wang's family, but also the wife of Xiao Yun, the woman who is in charge of the palace with the Empress Dowager.
In a blink of an eye, my father was a lot older, and he was still calm and relaxed, but he was no longer proud and proud. No matter how strong a person is, when he gets old, he will always become weak. When he was most isolated, I stood behind him silently, and guarded every family with him, this family.
My aunt once said that the man's duty is to open up and conquer, but the woman's duty is to protect and guard. Every family will have some tough women, inheriting the mission of the protector from generation to generation ... In the midst, my father and I have changed their positions. My parents and aunts who are getting old are starting to need my care, and have been The me under their protection has grown into a new protector of this family.
Recently father always mentioned his hometown and his uncle. Since the death of his uncle, his aunt returned to his hometown with his two daughters, Fu Ling, and never returned to Beijing. My father has also left his hometown Langya for many years. If things are high this year, it is even more nostalgic. He always hoped that one day he would let go of the turbulent affairs, one by one, one by one, travelling around, traveling between the mountains and rivers, and walking through the beautiful rivers and mountains. I understand my father's heart. Erhai Lake has been up and down all his life. Now that he is disheartened, returning to the countryside may be his best choice. The only regret was that the mother could not forgive her father and she did not want to leave Ci'an Temple anymore.
The father no longer insisted. He went to visit my mother for the last time with me, and gazed silently at her back for a long time. He sighed, "At this point in life, we have our own refuge, and there is no regret at the end."
At that time, I felt a little bit different. My father used to say that Grandma was the most understanding of us, and our father and daughter were most interested in the same thing—but I didn't expect that my father's intention was so determined and he decided to come so fast.
A few days later, my father suddenly handed in his resignation letter and never said goodbye to anyone. He quietly left a book, took only two old servants, a box of books, and sealed it off.
I got the news, and chased out of the suburbs of Beijing with my brother for dozens of miles, until Hejin Ferry, but saw a lonely boat sailing across the river, Peng Fan gradually disappearing into the depths of the water clouds ... So my father threw himself into the dust and left alone go with. The temples are prominent, and the rivers and lakes are high, and I really admire my father today.
The mother heard the news of her father's resignation and traveled far away. However, Aunt Xu told me the next day that her mother stayed up all night and read the whole scripture.
Soon after, after a long-lost happy event, Wyan finally married Jade and became my sister-in-law. I have two more relatives. Even if I have no blood relatives, it makes me feel precious. Later, his elder brother's aunt gave birth to a boy for him, this is his third child. The joy dilutes the sorrow. Day after day, the imperial capital that has faded from the storm returns to the past prosperity.
Time flies fast, and the little emperor has already learned the language, but unfortunately he is inherently weak and has not been able to learn to walk. Whenever I hear him vaguely call me "Aunt" and see his innocent smile, I still feel a little sad.
Xiao Yan returned to the house late that day, unloaded the court clothes, and put on the robe I handed over, looking slightly tired. I turned to pick up the ginseng tea, but was stopped by him to turn around, and circled gently around the arms.
His anxious expression made me feel uneasy. Leaning against his chest, he asked softly, "What's wrong?"
"It's okay, sit with me for a while." He narrowed his eyes slightly, his chin rested lightly on my forehead. Hearing a sigh of contentment and tiredness, I felt a little sore in my heart, raised my arm around his waist, and said softly, "Are you still annoyed by the Jiangnan water?" Xiao Yan nodded, and there was only a smile on his face. He also converged, sighing deeply, "Now the political situation is unstable, the rebels are on the safe side of Jiangnan, and they have been unable to send troops for crusades. Now that floods are happening again, and Li Min is displaced, hate that no man from the Manchu dynasty will dare to stand up and take charge!"
I was silent for a moment, and my heart was heavy. Since the beginning of spring this year, the river channel has frequently shown abnormal signs. Recently, many experienced state officials have played. Recently, there may be serious floods during the spring and summer. The court should take precautions early. However, the officials of the Manchu dynasty were sincere and horrified, and no one dared to stand up to take up this important task, which greatly annoyed Xiao Xuan, but there was nothing he could do.
I groaned for a long time, remembering that when my uncle was in the past, he had done great work in controlling floods in the south of the Yangtze River. Now that his uncle is gone, none of the servants who followed him to manage the river can do the job.
Xiao Yan sighed, and said lightly, "I fancy a candidate, but I don't know if this person has this ambition."
I froze, and there was a flash of aura in my head, and I looked at Xiao Yan in shock, "You mean ... brother?"
In that year, my brother followed the second uncle to inspect the river floods, supervised the water conservancy, and witnessed the suffering of the people on both sides of the river due to the annual floods. After returning to Beijing, he read countless books, immersed himself in the study of water conservancy, and personally walked the rivers and rivers, collected the local people's conditions, wrote the tens of thousands of words of "Water Control Policy" and submitted to the court. However, his father always regarded him as a bad job and never regarded him as a noble son of Zhihe Tao.
In that year, the rivers and rivers burst, and countless people were killed and injured. Thousands of homes were abandoned, and all officials were degraded for poor river management. Since then, the officials of the Manchu dynasty never dare to sit on the governor of the river easily. However, that year, my brother concealed his father, applied for the position on the table, and volunteered to take up the post. The break was naturally suppressed by his father and he was severely reprimanded. My father said that Zhihe University's service is about people's livelihood. The story came back and was talked about as a laugh from the wild. No one believed that a romantic boy like my brother would be able to perform the rough and heavy task of governing the river.
Since then, my brother has dispelled this imagination, and since then he has indulged in poetry and wine, and never mentions anything about rivers and rivers.
However, he never expected that at this time, Xiao Min thought of his brother. For a while, my heart was full of emotions and mixed feelings. Xiao Yan looked at me with a smile and didn't speak, his expression was unpredictable.
"Such a major event, if you use your brother rashly, aren't you afraid of North Korea and China?" I thought about it and asked him tentatively, but I didn't say another serious thought in my heart-in case my brother did not succeed, not only Xiao Yan would be accused by Wanmin , Wang's reputation will also be greatly affected. Xiao Yan smiled indifferently. "Even if it is inevitable now, I will take a chance."
"Why the brother?" I frowned at him.
"With Wang Xi's intellect, I believe he will be able to take on this role, but now I don't know if he has this ambition ..." Xiao Yan looked deep and sighed, "For a long time, the family members have a lot of doubt and resistance, Not willing to use it for me. If Wang Xi can make a difference this time, it can also show that I have no prejudice against the children of the family and make others. "
I was silent for a moment and sighed, "That's just human nature. With the lessons of Xie's family, I am afraid that all families are already scared, and now I can't afford to protect myself, and there is still something to think about."
Xiao Jian's eyebrows deepened, "Under times of chaos, how could these gatekeepers be expensive and deterred if it was not for iron and steel."
"It's not the best way to stop killing by killing, but if you can stop the chaos with small killing, it's worth it." I took a deep look at him, put his hand on the back of his hand, and said softly, "I know you are correct."
Xiao Yan moved with emotion, and was relieved, "With you knowing me, it's enough."
I smiled a little, and my heart understood that, "If your brother serves as Governor of the River and is used by you, it will naturally cause other families to dispel doubts, let go of Chen Jian, and understand that you treat all people equally."
"Good!" Xiao Yan applauded with a smile, but I was a little hesitant, "but I don't know how my brother thought ..."
"Whether he can go to office with all his strength depends on the ability of the princess." Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow at me with a deep smile in his eyes. It dawned on me that it had been around for a long time, and that was his real intention ... this abominable person!
The next day, I only brought a personal maid with me, and quietly came to my brother's outbuilding on the outskirts of the city.
Standing at the entrance of this elegant building like Wuyuan Wonderland, I couldn't help sighing. My brother is really a wonderful person and knows how to enjoy. He always found so many wonderful people and craftsmen, and built this little place to be warm in winter and cool in summer, so clever. Along the way, before I got to the hall, I could hear the sounds of babbling and lingering.
But when he saw the rose blooming near the water sill, his brother closed his eyes and leaned on the broth slightly, and the jade jade loosely raised his bun, and a few strands of hair suddenly fell down. His white robe was better than the snow, and his coat was slightly open. Exposing the fair-skinned skin between the necks, the two beauty girls on the side were not as good as his state at the moment. I slowly entered the threshold, he still did not open his eyes, and the two Maggies were busy saluting, and I stopped by raising my hand.
The elder brother turned slightly, closed his eyes and said, "Emerald, drink wine--"
I reached into the cup with my fingertips, dipped in some wine, and pointed my fingers at his handsome face. As soon as the wine spilled on his face, his brother screamed and turned up, "Zhu Yan, you girl!"
As soon as he stayed, he could clearly see the person in front of him, and suddenly yelled, "Ah, it's you!" The two Maggies hurried forward, and Ropa on the left and the right towel on his right kept busy wiping his face. But I groaned and cuffed his cuff of Gong Jin's white robe, politely rubbing his fingertips at the stain, and raised his eyebrow and smiled, "It seems that I'm not here for a while?" He looked helpless and sighed, "You can't be right Am I gentle? Anyway, I'm also a princess, so naughty. "
I turned around to see the two beauties, one in a red dress and one in a green dress, all beautiful. My brother took the jade cup and leaned back on the Jinta, squinting at me, "Are you here to appreciate the beauty, or have you come to me to make trouble?"
"Beauty wants rewards, and lazy people also scold." I took the wine glass in his hand, "don't think that my father is away, no one can control you."
The elder brother turned up and sat up, grinning in shock, "Which woman has gone wrong?"
I glared at him, glaring for a long while, and finally my heart was sore, and I sighed, "Brother, you are more lazy now."
The elder brother froze and turned his face away from talking. The maid took the streamer sapphire pot forward and filled the ball cup in front of me. The elder brother smiled slightly. "Come, try my new brew this year."
I just took a sip of my lips and just felt the scent of fragrance and lingering fragrance. I exclaimed, "Good wine!" My elder brother was so proud of it, "Taste a little more."
At the beginning of this wine, the fragrance is lingering, there is a lingering spring breeze, the night is shining, the peach blossom is colorful, and it is clearly only a little bit of drunkenness, but the throat is soft, and it melts into the limbs. Feeling the cheeks are slightly warm. I sighed and smiled, "Fang Fei in April, with dark red makeup, leaning on the railing and thinking about people, Luoying Manchu."
The elder brother laughed, "Good taste, I have to compliment these four sentences, don't tell me that I have collected the Wuling peach blossoms ... My grandma, so wonderful!"
"Is this peach peach stuffed?" I was surprised. "Did you really make it?" My elder brother loved the charming of peach blossoms in the past. We tried many times together, but we couldn't make this peach stuffed. Unexpectedly, after a lapse of years, he was quietly made. If you are smart and smart, I'm afraid no one in the world can beat your brother. He leaned on the couch with a deep smile, and I yelled, "How long would you like to keep it private if it weren't hitting you today?"
The elder brother smiled lazily, "What is rare in a pot of wine? As soon as I'm a casual person, I'm good at it."
I wanted to refute, but didn't know what to say, and was silent for a while. My elder brother was so excited that he called Sing-ji, re-poked, and sat down with me.
After drinking a glass of alcohol, we gradually felt a little bit lost, and we sang each other as the silk and bamboo hit the festival under the gallery. The qin ji styles sing a Jiangnan minor, melodious and brisk, without even reminding the youth.
"Bring the harp ..." I stood up slightly and looked back at my brother and smiled. "Be bold and perform, and invite the sons to come together."
The elder brother claimed that he was wonderful, and immediately called on his servant to bring his famous crane-inducing flute. My Qingqin Guqin was not brought from the palace, so I randomly picked Yao Ji's Yaoqin, brushed it away, and the tone was clear.
I gazed at my eyes, twitched under my fingers, and the rest of the strings on the strings continued to turn.
At the beginning of Qing Yun's "Shangyang Spring", a whistle of ethereal flute rises in the tunes of Wan Zhuan, and they are drawn one after the other, like a pair of butterflies, and will play each other in the spring breeze. Suddenly the sound of the piano turned, from the bright April day, the autumn evening swaying into the oblique rain, the sun was setting, the world was dark, and the sound of the flute was low and quiet. , Endless complaints about falling flowers.
My elder brother leaned in and looked at me. His eyes were stunned, and there was a moment of distraction, and the sound of the flute followed. I was indifferent, pointing down suddenly, striding through a string of golden iron and iron killing sounds, stunned by the sorrowful flute sound, and brought the vastness of the yellow sand of the desert and the mighty grandeur of the long river. My piano sounds higher and higher, and the flying place is like a ranger, fighting against swords and rivers; the heated place is like a general with hundreds of battles. However, the flute sound gradually became weak, and after a few twists, I could not keep up with my rhythm. Suddenly a crack sounded, the strings broke, and the sound of the flute was dumb.
The elder brother had a jade-like face, covered with a layer of strange red, his eyes were shocked, and the knuckles of the flute were faintly white. I also swelled with blood, sweating through clothes, seemingly exhausting my whole body, and could not speak for a while.
"Ama, your piano skills are so good that my brother can no longer keep up." My brother turned to look at me with a smile, and his expression was a little shaky.
I raised my eyes and looked straight at him, and slowly said, "The mind is born from the heart, the song turns with the heart, the Yinhe flute is still unparalleled in the world, but brother, what about your heart, is it still as open as before?"
My brother was shocked, but avoided my gaze and turned away from answering.
I suddenly pushed up the piano, picked up the broken Yaoqin, and fell under the steps. The sound of the cracked piano was so horrified that the birds were scattered outside the threshold, and the left and right servants hurriedly bowed to the ground, afraid to look up.
"Brother! This mediocre Yaoqin can only be hidden in the boudoir, and the wind and the moon can't be regarded as a majestic sound. And the Yinhe flute is not an ordinary product, and he can bury it in the fat powder group, all day long and extravagant. To him! "I stared at him, clearly seeing the embarrassment passing by in his eyes. The elder brother was silent for a long time and sighed, "No matter how good the flute is, after all, it is dead."
"It depends on what kind of master it meets." I looked at my brother. "The flute is dead, but people are alive. As long as they still have ambitions, they will eventually find their way, and they will go on, even far away. Can't beat my brother! "
My brother turned back and looked at me deeply.
I met his gaze and smiled, "My elder brother admired him since he was a child. It used to be, and it will be!"
The next day, my brother offered to see Xiao Yan.
This is the first time they have interviewed individually, publicly and privately, and reasonably. I know the elder brother's hostility towards Xiao Ye, and I also know Xiao Ye's opinion of his brother. However, I did not set foot in the study, and let them talk for two full hours, and I did not know that I had missed the dinner time. This is a conversation between King Yuzhang and Lord Wang, and also a confrontation between two men. Regardless of their status, men in the world always have a set of truths in their hearts that they think cannot be shaken, which is completely different from women's concerns. I don't want to be in the middle of this delicate balance. Instead of being in a dilemma, let them settle their grudges in a man's way.
The next day, under the imperial decree, Wang Ren was appointed Governor of the River, supervised the royal history, and received the title of the book.
For a time, there was an uproar and rumors, and few people were optimistic about his brother's ability to govern the river. The courtiers discussed Wang Yuzhang's use of his wife's clan on the one hand, and faced the new river governor with skepticism on the other. The elder brother finally jumped from the famous son under the aura of his father, and became a rising star in the court. In the face of all kinds of eyes, my brother only smiled.
The floods in the south of the Yangtze River are so urgent that they should not be delayed for a day. Just three days after the edict was given, my brother set off for office.
Xiao Yan and I personally sent him to the suburbs of Beijing, and the officials of the Beijing Central Committee accompanied him.
My elder brother was wearing a qing qing yunhe wenjin dynasty uniform, a jade belt and a high crown, ran a horse across the long bridge, and looked back at the bridge, and smiled at me distantly. The journey is thousands of miles away, and the future is so difficult. My brother will face the storms and hardships, I'm afraid I can't imagine. Watching his figure drift away, tears finally fainted his eyes ... I remembered that when I went to the building and watched the army, I saw my father's python robe and jade belt in the distance, ranking first among the hundred officials. I once made fun of my brother and asked him what This time can be so beautiful ... Unexpectedly, after a few years, my brother really became the youngest Shangshu since the founding of this dynasty.
In the blink of an eye, summer and autumn came, and my brother had been away from Beijing for more than half a year, maybe it was God ’s good luck. This summer, there was a drought, and the flood was not as severe as expected. The floods in individual states and counties were also under the control of his brother. There were no major disasters. The dredging of the river was smooth and the construction of the was progressing very quickly. However, my brother wrote to the court, saying that this winter and next spring is the most severe time, and we can't relax.
This autumn is going very fast. When the wood leaves are gone, I received a gift from the emperor's tomb—the uncle of the emperor's uncle, Su, who gave birth to his first child, a girl. In accordance with the rules of the royal family, it is necessary to ask the empress and queen mother for help before they can recognize the child's orthodoxy. As usual, the handbook of the Empress Dowager and Queen Mother was handed to me, holding the thin piece of Zhu Xi's handbook, and I was suddenly lost in thought.
He already has a servant, a daughter ... Ziyi, Ziyi! It's been five years, and often when I pronounce the name, why does my heart still fall empty, as if pinched by an invisible hand.
The situation on the day he left Beijing was still in sight. On that day, catkins flew, and drizzle was silky, but we never expected that it would take five years to go to Huangling. If today is overturned, things are wrong, everything was ashes in the past.
But fortunately, who knows, if there is no confinement for these five years, if he is in the imperial city, I am afraid that he has already been involved in the battle for thrones. It is unknown whether he is still alive today.
Since the emperor's death and Xie's ambush, he has become an insignificant person. Someone once spoke to Xiao Yan, simply removing his daughter-in-law and never suffering afterwards. However, Xiao Xun's concern over the repeated slaughter has made the family's pro-nobles cold and cold. If they blindly kill them, they will lose the hearts of the savages. Soon after, Xiao Xuan released Zi Xun from Xinyiwu to Huangling and removed his original imprisonment. He was considered to be free, but he could not take a half step out of Huangling.
A dead leaf was blown into the curtain by the wind, and fell gently on the folder. I said nothing and slowly closed the folder.
When he parted at the time, he was still a handsome boy, but now he has his daughter ... After a while, I felt a little relief in my heart, and even a little relief. Wanting to come to him at the Emperor's Tomb, lonely and lonely, can have a confidant and a long companion, and it makes me feel a little relieved.
However, after all, there was a trace of inexplicability in my heart. If I named his daughter again, it would be a great mockery. With this in mind, I sighed silently. The female officer in the palace transferred her orphan to Taichang Temple, and the official in charge of the ceremonial system proposed the name and presented it. Immediately I summoned the Shaofu Temple Superintendent and ordered him to prepare the concubine to the Imperial Tomb in the princess system.
The bright candle is about to run out. When it's time to go to bed, I remove the ring in front of the mirror, and my long hair is scattered like a cloud, hanging down to my waist.
Xiao Yan wore a loose silk robe and hugged me from behind. He stood upright and solid with me, separated by thin silk. As soon as my cheeks became hot, and my skin became hot, I turned around and caught his neck, sliding my fingers along the neckline, and lightly rubbing his embroidery on the dragon. The dragon is the ornament of the royal prince, but the flying dragon is only available to the emperor. I don't know when the dragon on his placket will be replaced by the dragon who is proud of the nine days ... I know this day will not be too far away.
His hand slid under my silk robe, slipped over the waist, slowly moved to the chest, the warmth of the palm burned my skin, making me suddenly soft. I panted and rushed, bit my lip slightly, and looked up at him. His eyes were deep, his eyes were floating with blurs, and he leaned closer and closer ... After a long kiss that was almost choking, he let go of my lips, and thinly cut his lips over his neck, embracing my earlobe. I groaned, but I heard him say lowly, "Can Uncle Huang's child be prepared for congratulations?"
As soon as I shuddered, I woke up suddenly, and met his sharp eyes, and my heart tightened suddenly.
"That's a girl." I whispered, a bit dry in my throat.
"I know." He smiled slightly, but his eyes were calm.
I was so relieved that I was too nervous, lest he couldn't bear another heir to the throne. Now that he knew it was a girl, and the daughter of a lost emperor's uncle, why did he carelessly ask this question?
"Why, you seem to be worried?" His voice got colder, his eyes sharpened like a knife.
I hesitated for a moment, and then I realized that I had come to my mind ... Couldn't he be jealous of a child just born?
He knew the old story between me and his son-in-law childhood, but we kept quietly silent over the years and kept silent about it. I thought he had forgotten that past. I was shocked to laugh and admitted it with a sigh of relief, "Yes! The child was born in the cold tomb of the imperial tomb, and was born out of pitiful life. So I have great pity. Lian Heyi was also prepared according to the princess. OK? "
Seeing that I admit it so readily, Xiao Ye was speechless for a moment, and asked with a deep expression on his face, "Just pity?"
I blinked and laughed, "What else do you think it is, Love House and Black?"
He was dumb, embarrassed when I was robbed, and his eyes suddenly became angry.
"Zi and I had two innocent feelings, you know that." I raised an eyebrow, smiled calmly, and watched his face gradually turn green. "At that time, you didn't know there was a woman in the world called Wang Yan, I I do n’t know that there is another man named Xiao Yue in the world; at that time, I thought that the people around me were already the best, but I did n’t know that it was totally different to be in love with a person and to be close to two young people.

Xiao Yan still looked at me coldly, the corners of his lips were tight, but his eyes clearly had a warm smile that could not be masked, "how different?"
I lifted my toes, raised my head and printed a dragonfly-like watery kiss on his neck. Man laughed softly and said, "What's the difference ... you can see it if you try it?"
"Try it?" His breathing was sharp, his cold face couldn't hold on anymore, and he chuckled, "Great, this is what you said!"
With his arm tight, he hugged me horizontally and strode toward the bed hangings.