In a blink of an eye, it’s the New Year of the second year of Jianwen.
On the first day of the Yuan Dynasty, Zhu Yunwen went to the temple to pay respects to the mausoleum early in the morning as usual, and did not return to the palace until noon. Passing by the Meridian Gate, I couldn't help but sigh as I thought of the series of stories about the drums of grievance being beaten on this day last year.
Go to Yuehua Palace first, and then Kunning Palace to pay respects to the Crown Princess and the Queen Mother. The Queen happened to be there too and wished each other happy New Year, and the two sons received New Year's red envelopes. I finally finished my work and returned to the Provincial Gong Hall.
Wang Zhi was giving a report in the palace. He was a little surprised when he saw that the emperor came to the palace today. He quickly asked: "Your Majesty, will you have a rest today? There are not many memorials. I saw that there is nothing important. This New Year, all the officials are also resting." ”
Zhu Yunwen looked at the case and saw that there were only a few memorials. It was the New Year after all. Leaning back in the chair, Zhu Yunwen thought, why not go to Tianxi Temple now? Arrive early to surprise Lotus and bring some New Year rice cakes and glutinous rice balls.
Having made up his mind, Zhu Yunwen couldn't help but get excited. Wang Zhi saw the emperor's face and guessed that he was going to see the lotus. He was secretly happy for the emperor.
Suddenly, Zhang Yuanheng hurried in and ran to Zhu Yunzhen in two or three steps: "Your Majesty! Something happened!"
Zhu Yunwen frowned: "What?"
Zhang Yuanheng said hurriedly: "Your Majesty is missing!"
Zhu Yunwen was surprised: "What do you mean missing?"
Zhang Yuanheng said anxiously: "Zhien went to the temple early in the morning and went to the tower to see that the empress was missing! Now I am waiting outside with Abbot Xuanxin."
"Quick pass!"
Zhien entered the provincial palace with tears in her eyes. As soon as she entered the door, she fell on the ground and cried bitterly: "Your Majesty, save the princess!"
Zhu Yunwen was anxious in his heart, but his upbringing since he was a child could not help him to be presumptuous, so he still asked unhurriedly: "Did you arrive at the temple early in the morning? The princess is missing?"
Zhien cried so much that she choked: "The maid arrived at the wooden door early in the morning. The door was closed. No one answered her calls after several calls. The maid was worried that the princess was sick again, so she boldly opened the door and entered the tower. The tower was empty. No one is there! The maid hurriedly went to call Hai Shou and the guards, but all of them were unconscious." She looked sideways at Xuan Xin and continued: "The maid screamed in fright. The abbot ran over and looked at it and said... Drugged."
Zhu Yunwen looked at Xuan Xin, and Xuan Xin said softly: "Your Majesty, forgive me! Hai Shou and the guards were drugged. The poor monk gave them water and they all woke up soon. But no one can tell what happened. Yesterday On New Year's Eve, there were a little more people offering incense in the temple than usual, but certainly no one came to the pagoda. The princess was fine at night, but it happened at night."
Seeing the emperor's frown, Xuanxin continued: "Today is the New Year's Day. Many believers originally offered incense, but the poor monk asked the mountain gate to be closed first and no one entered the temple."
Zhang Yuanheng said from the side: "Your Majesty, the drug was used. The thief was obviously well prepared to rob the princess."
Zhu Yunwen frowned, and after hearing this, he couldn't help but turn his head and glance at Wang Zhi, who was also looking at the emperor. As the two looked at each other, their hearts felt cold: the four young eunuchs from the Qianqing Palace and the seventeen young eunuchs from the Fengtian Palace had all been buried that day. There was someone else who poisoned her, and he actually kidnapped her today!
Zhu Yunwen said slowly: "It is reported that Zhao Fu, Yin of Tianfu! It is reported that Feng Guo, the commander of the Twelve Guards' personal army!"
****************
It’s so warm! Lotus felt the warmth in her sleep, curled up in the bed eagerly, and continued to sleep.
It felt like I was still at home, with the hot Kang, the thick and soft mattress, and the fluffy quilt with the smell of sunshine. The aroma of food wafted from the kitchen, and my mother was making delicious food again. My father and brother were about to go to court. I heard them whispering: "Let Lianhua and Axiu sleep a little longer."
Yes, sleep a little longer.
Lotus curled up again, with a smile on her lips, and continued to sleep.
The younger brother shouted: "Sister! Lazy man! Get up!"
Lianhua ignored her and covered her head with the quilt. The younger brother immediately sat on the edge of the kang and yelled, "Sluggard! The sun is too hot!" while holding his older sister's hand and shaking it.
My younger brother has been practicing martial arts since he was a child. His palms are hard and hard, with protruding joints and calluses on his fingers.
In a trance, I held my little brother's hand and went to the yard together. My mother was making cakes, and my little brother rushed to help: "I'll beat him! I'll beat him!" The mother handed over the gavel with a smile.
Why is it Li Fangyuan? As he ran in, he shouted: "Lotus, look! What have I brought you?" He held up two books from heaven in his hands. The sky was blue, golden sunlight shone on his body, and his eyes shone like gems. The azure figure is as tall and majestic as the poplar tree in the courtyard.
"Brother Yuanyuan..." Lianhua muttered and turned over.
It smells so good. Did your mother make miso soup? Hey, what is that cooing? It's my stomach that's growling with hunger. .
oops! Lianhua slowly opened her eyes and put her right hand on her belly, feeling a little embarrassed.
There is a large carved wooden bed, the autumn fragrant gauze curtain looks like smoke and mist, the bed is covered with brocade, and the bed is covered with a quilt.
The sky-blue screen window lets through the golden sunlight. An azure-colored figure stood by the window, looking out the window with his hands behind his back, tall and majestic, motionless. Lianhua murmured "Brother Yuanyuan" and rubbed her eyes. Why do I keep dreaming of Li Fangyuan these days
Hearing the movement, the figure from behind quickly turned around and walked to the couch in a few steps. It’s really Li Fangyuan!
Lotus stared blankly, was he dreaming
Still wearing an azure robe, with a knife-like jaw and eyes like gems.
A smile appeared on Li Fangyuan's usually stern face: "Are you stupid? Don't you recognize it? It's me."
After a while, Lianhua was convinced that she was not dreaming, and murmured, "How long have I been asleep?"
Li Fangyuan's smile remained unchanged: "I've been sleeping for three days. You can really sleep." In order to rescue Lian Hua, she was drugged. Li Fang saw that Lian Hua was still awake and worried that she had taken too much medicine. Until I saw her smiling in her dream, reacting to holding her hand, and calling out "Brother Yuanyuan..." in my dream. When I heard this, I felt that the adventure of traveling thousands of miles was all in vain.
Lotus asked softly: "Why am I here?"
Li Fangyuan stared at her: "I heard from Fatty Zhao and Li Tianqi what you looked like in the tower, and I didn't want you to freeze to death."
Lianhua couldn't help but said anxiously: "You robbed me? You, you are fooling around!" With his disappearance, Zhu Yunwen couldn't die in a hurry? How big of a disturbance will it cause? If you find it is Li Fangyuan. . Lianhua didn't dare to think about it anymore, and thick beads of sweat oozed from her forehead.
Li Fangyuan spread his hands: "All the tribulations have been robbed." Apparently, he had anticipated Lianhua's reaction and had already made up his mind to ignore it.
Lian Hua was startled and looked at him steadily.
Compared with the time in Seoul three years ago, and even compared with the time in Daningwei two and a half years ago, Li Fangyuan is very different. He is still the same cold and aloof person, but his jewel-like eyes are a little more sharp, and his movements are full of confidence and determination.
Li Fang saw Lotus in a daze, and smiled softly: "Are you hungry? Eat something first." Then he raised his voice and shouted: "Ernie!"
"Here we come!" A middle-aged woman entered the room and saluted the lotus: "Princess is awake?"
Li Fangyuan introduced: "This is from Li Tianqi's family." At the same time, he ordered: "The princess is hungry, get some food."
Sister-in-law Li agreed and went in a hurry. After a while, a big lacquer tray came in, and the aroma from afar was fragrant. Lianhua was not used to eating on the couch and looked at Li Fangyuan.
Li Fangyuan smiled: "You get up and eat slowly. I'll go outside and talk to Tian Qi about something." He looked at the sweat beads on Lian Hua's head and said, "If you want to take a bath, just tell Sister-in-law Li."
Lianhua's face turned red, and the sweat on her forehead was almost dripping. Li Fangyuan smiled, turned around and went out, his steps brisk, obviously in a good mood.
Lianhua put on a coat over her jacket and sat in front of the case. It’s really miso soup! And kimchi! Lotus smelled this familiar fragrance, the fragrance of her hometown, and couldn't help but think of Seoul and her mother.
Sister-in-law Li advised from the side: "Princess, can you eat something? The princess is too thin, and the old lady will definitely miss her. Eating a little fatter is also a filial piety." Lianhua hummed, took a spoonful of soup and raised it to her mouth, but tears flowed down unknowingly.
Sister-in-law Li was a little panicked and hurriedly handed over the handkerchief and said: "Don't be sad, princess! Just tell the king if you have anything! The king came all the way here because he must be happy for the princess!"
Lianhua took the handkerchief and wiped away her tears: "Enie, I'm fine. I just feel a little homesick when I see this miso soup and kimchi."
Sister-in-law Li consoled her: "Then the princess should eat more. There will be cakes later. The king said that the princess likes sweet ones, so I made them with bean paste filling."
Lianhua said nothing and ate slowly.
Suddenly there was the sound of boots, and Li Fangyuan strode into the house again, grabbed Lianhua's hand and said, "Come down with me for a while." He motioned to Sister-in-law Li to pack up quickly.
Lianhua didn't know why, but Li Fangyuan grabbed her arm and couldn't move, so she had to follow him downstairs in a hurry, walked through the short corridor, and walked to the front hall. Li Tianqi was waiting, and there was a tunnel opening next to a large camphor wood box that had been moved away. Li Fangyuan pulled Lianhua and hurriedly walked down the wooden ladder. Lianhua was stunned when she heard the sound of a lid being put on her head and a wooden box being moved.
Li Fangyuan then let go of his hand and whispered in the darkness: "Don't make a sound! Yingtianfu Yamen is searching the city."
Lian Hua couldn't see it, but nodded anyway.
Slowly, her eyes adapted to the light in the dark, and Lianhua saw that it was a huge basement. It was very clean and the floor was covered with bamboo mats. There were rows of large boxes lined up against the wall, and I didn't know what was in them.
Li Fangyuan handed over a futon, and Lianhua also felt a little cold on the bamboo. She took the futon and sat cross-legged, ignoring Li Fangyuan, closing her eyes and chanting sutras silently. Li Fangyuan stood expressionlessly with his hands behind his back, still upright and majestic.
Not long after, there were chaotic footsteps overhead, and then there were the voices of loud questions, the voices of Li Tianqi answering carefully, and the voices of rummaging around in boxes and cabinets. The ping ping ping pong seemed to knock over a lot of things, mixed with Sister-in-law Li's exclamations.
Li Fangyuan remained motionless, the lotus flower lowered its head and closed its eyes, as if he had already fallen into concentration.
Finally, it gradually became quiet, and the sound of footsteps gradually faded away. There were all kinds of rustling sounds again, and for a long time, the wooden box above the head seemed to be moving. As soon as the lid was opened, a pillar of light shot down.
Li Fangyuan narrowed his eyes and said softly: "It's okay, let's go up." After saying that, he turned around and climbed up the wooden ladder first.
Lianhua had no choice but to follow behind and enter the house. Li Tian Qifu restored the camphor wood box again and said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I won't come again." He raised his head and said again: "The city gates are all sealed, and we can only enter but not leave."
Li Fangyuan snorted: "The city will be sealed off on the first day of the year. How long can it be sealed? It is impossible for the city gate of Yingtian Mansion, the majestic capital of the capital, to be sealed forever." Turning his head to the side, he saw Lianhua listening quietly and said comfortingly: "Don't worry, we'll just wait."
Lianhua couldn't laugh or cry, Li Fangyuan said he was painting, and actually planned to take him back to North Korea. Lianhua knew that he was stubborn and stubborn, and this time it was even more obvious that he had made up his mind. He could not be persuaded by just a few words, so he had to slowly look for opportunities.
Lianhua smiled bitterly as she walked back to the small building along the corridor and looked out the window.
It rarely snows in the winter in Jiangnan, and it is often so humid. Li Fangyuan didn't know when he arranged this house. It was a three-entry courtyard for ordinary wealthy households in Jiangnan. In front are the kitchens in the left and right wing rooms of the main hall. My own room is like an embroidered building in a garden. The small garden downstairs is a little bare in the harsh winter. The few bamboo poles by the windows are also yellow, and there are all kinds of dead leaves falling on the ground. Only the two green pines along the wall were still green, and the small pond next to the pines was full of clear water. A few red carps were swimming around, occasionally emerging from the water.
At this time, Sister-in-law Li came in and asked diligently: "Princess, the hot soup is ready. How about a bath, princess?" Lianhua looked down at herself and said "hmm" involuntarily.
Soaking in the steaming hot tub, Lotus leaned against the edge of the tub, so comfortable that she didn't want to move at all. I have been in the tower for more than a year and a half, and Xisu just sends water into the tower every day and then moves it out. It was extremely cold in the tower, so I didn't even think about taking a bath. Even my hair took several days to wash, and each time Hai Shou had to go to the large kitchen of Tianxi Temple to fetch buckets of hot water.
Sometimes Lian Hua couldn't help but think, isn't it somehow related to the fact that monks don't grow their hair and they can't bathe in seclusion
There were faint sounds of laughter and the sound of flutes and strings not far away, "Spreading red foil across the bank, playing purple flutes in the wind." Could it be that I was in the prosperous Qinhuai? Lotus shook her head, not wanting to think about it, intoxicated in the mist. Life is beautiful at this time, right
After changing two buckets of water and soaking for an unknown amount of time, the sky outside the window had darkened, and the lotus lazily got up. Sister-in-law Li wrapped the princess in a big cotton blanket, and took a big cloth to dry her long hair carefully. She praised: "The hair on the princess's hair is really dark and smooth", and lit a few candles. , holding a pile of new clothes and placing them on the couch.
Lianhua smiled and said nothing. Looking at the pile of clothes, they were all light blue, made of various materials and styles, from underwear to outerwear, both gorgeous and elegant. Lianhua couldn't help but look at Sister-in-law Li.
Sister-in-law Li explained: "This is what the Maharaja went to do on New Year's Eve. He said it was for the princess and refused to let anyone else go. The Maharaja has collected all the items in the Mingyuexuan Colorful Hall in the capital."
Lotus stroked the clothes and imagined Li Fangyuan, a young man with a cold face, purchasing women's clothes in a colorful shop. Can't help but feel a little funny.
Sister-in-law Li also brought a bunch of things from the boudoir such as hairpins, rouge, gouache, and placed them neatly on the pile platform at the edge of the cave. She said: "These are also chosen by the monarch. The princess uses them slowly." After saying that, he packed up the bathtub and waited to go out.
Lotus sat beside the dressing table and unconsciously picked up a box of rouge to play with. The faint crimson color was soft and bright under the candlelight. Li Fangyuan was aloof by nature and was always impatient with such trivial matters, but he actually bought these rouge and gouache for himself.
Lotus looked at the candlelight and sighed in her heart, how could she repay what she owed him in this life
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