In the early spring, the peach blossoms in the imperial garden were in full bloom, and the breeze wrapped the petals and fell on the steps of the palace not far away.
Inside the Chang'an Palace, Jiang Rui was sitting in front of the mirror, and the maid took care of her make-up.
The woman in the mirror is about thirty years old, with a dignified appearance and a gentle demeanor. She is not too young, and she has been married for more than ten years, and she cannot compare with those delicate girls. But if you are a widow at this age, no matter who you are, you will probably sigh, "Poor, you are so young..."
Jiang Rui's identity in this world is that of the empress dowager of the dynasty, thanking her parents and daughters, she has been in the palace for many years and has nowhere to go. She holds a prince whose biological mother died young and raises her under her lap. It is the little emperor sitting on the dragon chair right now. It is not biological, but the affection is not shallower than that of biological.
Now the power and eunuchs are in power in the court, the government is in the hands of Lu Xingzhou, the great eunuch in charge of printing, and the emperor is just a puppet.
A few days ago, the empress dowager's father Xie Da Shi entered the palace, intending to plan with her to eradicate the eunuchs, in order to strengthen the government, but he did not expect that Lu Xingzhou's forces had penetrated here, and even the empress dowager's palace had his people, although the name The little maid did not hear the details, but Empress Dowager Xie was really frightened. After a serious illness, she suspected all day long that she was surrounded by eyeliners sent by Lu Xingzhou, lest she would kill him sooner or later. Frightened myself to death.
Jiang Rui got her body as a condition to grant her a wish. Empress Dowager Xie originally asked to kill Lu Xingzhou, but Jiang Rui naturally could not agree, because Lu Xingzhou was her goal this time. The empress dowager had to retreat and ask Jiang Rui to keep the life of the little emperor and the throne.
There was a sound from outside the hall, and after a while, the female official who was beside the Queen Mother Xie whispered in her ear: "Niangniang, someone from Chongzheng Hall came to deliver a message, and your majesty was crying."
The two thin eyebrows in the mirror frowned, and the dignified face immediately became a little worried and distressed, "Do you know why?"
"Yes, it was His Majesty who took a nap early in the morning, just when Eunuch Lu saw it..."
Needless to say, Jiang Rui also understands that Lu Xingzhou's methods can terrify an adult Queen Mother Xie, not to mention a five- or six-year-old little emperor.
She sighed softly, "Let the small kitchen prepare yam and lotus seed soup. After being ill these days, I feel more comfortable today, so I just went out for a walk to see Your Majesty."
The Empress Dowager Luan stopped in front of Chongzheng Hall, and Jiang Rui supported Han Yan's subordinates. When the maids and servants saw her, they saluted.
"The Empress Dowager is here!"
Before stepping into the hall door, I heard a burst of choking, and the voice was a little hoarse, and I wanted to cry for a long time.
Hearing the announcement, someone stumbled out of the hall and threw himself into Jiang Rui's arms, "Queen Mother! Woohoo..."
Jiang Rui's serious illness has just recovered, and it has eased a lot. After being thrown by him like this, she took two steps back, but fortunately, the people around her supported her.
The little emperor didn't notice it, he just buried his face in her arms and cried even louder, like an ordinary child seeing a backer after being wronged.
But he didn't know that his mother and queen could not protect herself.
Empress Dowager Xie had been looking forward to her own child for many years, and gradually lost her heart. She only regarded the child she brought as her own flesh and blood, and loved her like a jewel, so that although the little emperor was born in the royal family, she was not. When he was a little unhappy, he cried endlessly, far less sensible than the first few princes in the queue.
However, perhaps this is the reason why he was finally supported by Lu Xingzhou on the throne. A mindless puppet is easier to control than a self-assured puppet.
Jiang Rui wiped his tears with a handkerchief in one hand, and patted his back lightly with the other hand, "Stop crying, what should I do if my throat breaks? My mother brought your favorite yam and lotus seed soup, and it's still hot."
The little emperor sobbed, raised his head from her arms, and secretly looked at another person in the hall.
A total of two desks were placed in the hall. One was at the top and was used by the emperor, and the other was on the left side.
Jiang Rui followed the little emperor's line of sight and also looked over.
This great eunuch, who has the power to kill countless lives, is unexpectedly young. He looks similar to Empress Dowager Xie, and his appearance is not ferocious and terrifying as described by outsiders. Instead, he has long eyebrows and narrow eyes, because his complexion is paler than ordinary people. Looks a little weak.
The little emperor cried so pitifully just now, but as a courtier, he was sitting still, and he was even a little contented. Now, knowing that he was too late, he didn't show respect. It was not until now that Jiang Rui's eyes fell on him that he put down his hand. The memorial, with a light expression: "Congratulations to the Empress Dowager."
It was so disrespectful that the Queen Mother Xie dared not have any objection, the little emperor did not dare to object, and the maid and chambermaid who bowed their heads and bowed their heads even more did not dare to object.
Jiang Rui pursed her lips and clenched the little emperor's hand, barely maintaining a calm and decent look on her face, and nodded slightly. It seemed that it was not that she did not dare to point out his unreasonableness, but that she did not want to take down her identity and care about him.
She took the little emperor and walked into the inner hall, and asked the maid to fetch water to wash his face. After that, she hugged the person on her knee and sighed, "Your Majesty must be more sensible."
"Huh?" The little emperor swallowed the lotus seed soup fed by the maid, tilted his head and asked in confusion, "What did the queen say?"
Jiang Rui wiped his mouth: "I said that Your Majesty should grow up and not cry all the time."
"But..." The little emperor sniffled and seemed to want to cry again, "Eunuch Lu looks terrible."
"Did he beat and scold you?" Jiang Rui asked.
The little emperor shook his head, "No, but he hit Xiaoxizi's board, and Xiaoxizi screamed pitifully."
"I already know about this matter. Xiaoxizi, as His Majesty's personal servant, did not persuade His Majesty to go to bed earlier at night. Instead, he encouraged you to play and should be punished."
The little emperor lowered his head, sniffed, and dared not speak.
Jiang Rui touched his head and said, "No matter how fierce Eunuch Lu is, as the king of a country, His Majesty can neither beat you nor scold you, at most punish the people around you as a punishment, if His Majesty doesn't want to When you see them being beaten, you should restrain yourself, and don't let people find fault."
"Queen Mother." The little emperor grabbed her sleeve, "I don't want to be the emperor, I don't mean it at all. Let's tell Eunuch Lu, let someone else be the emperor, okay?"
He at least also knew who had the final say about being the emperor.
Jiang Rui hugged him and said, "But Eunuch Lu said it long ago that among so many princes, only my prince is the most well-behaved and clever. No one else can."
"Okay." The little emperor pursed his lips.
He cried a lot and spent a lot of energy, and fell asleep in Jiang Rui's arms not long after.
Jiang Rui asked the palace maid to guard him and went to the outer hall by herself.
"You all go down, I have a few words to discuss with Eunuch Lu alone," she said.
The attendants in the temple did not leave immediately, and did not retreat until they saw Lu Xingzhou nodding.
Seeing this scene, Jiang Rui couldn't help thinking in her heart, no wonder the Empress Dowager Xie was frightened to death by her own thoughts. In this palace, Lu Xingzhou had indeed been asked to cover the sky with one hand.
Master Xie's plan, is Lu Xingzhou clear? Jiang Rui felt that he should know, and he might even know exactly why Empress Dowager Xie fell ill.
But he didn't do anything, just like a sword hanging on a person's head, knowing that it was already hanging above, but he refused to drop it, making people worry all day, panic, and even more and more despair, and finally lost a piece. Life.
And he was admiring it from beginning to end.
"I don't know what's the matter with your mother?" Lu Xingzhou opened his mouth and his eyes fell on her.
Jiang Rui straightened her back immediately. Empress Dowager Xie had a small skeleton and became even thinner after her illness. She could hardly hold up her phoenix robe, but she still tried her best to present the grace and splendor that belonged to the empress dowager of the past, from top to bottom. When looking down at people, there is a sense of superiority.
However, Lu Xingzhou saw his bluff.
These people call themselves the nobles of the royal family, the phoenix and the dragon.
The more noble a person is, the more satisfied the onlookers are when they fall off the altar.
He looked at it almost happily.
The author has something to say:
Jiang Rui: If you want to see it, just pretend to show it to you~