Imperial capital.
In the bright and lush summer, the fragrance of roses and jasmine often comes from the streets and alleys.
But the current situation is like the sky at this moment, with heavy clouds hanging as low as a curtain, weighing on the top of the head and also on people's hearts. The entire magnificent imperial capital was shrouded in indescribable depression.
In a secluded place in the south of the city, there is a wealthy mansion. It occupies a small area, but the interior layout is very exquisite.
However, people nearby knew that the owner of this place did not come to live often. He only came to sit for a while without saying a word. He came and went in a hurry and never met his neighbors. He seemed very mysterious.
If no one came, the whole mansion would be empty, and someone would surely suspect that this is a hiding place.
But in fact, this is the dowry property of the late Zhou Baolin. Although Zhou Baolin's entry into the palace cannot be regarded as marrying the emperor, she is the legitimate daughter of the Zhou family. When she left the palace, her parents were reluctant to part with her, so they still gave her the dowry originally prepared for her. Got her. Among them, this is Zhou Baolin’s favorite courtyard before he left the cabinet.
After Zhou Baolin was murdered by Queen Gu, this place naturally belonged to Shenbo.
As Shen Bo got older, although there was no shortage of houses both inside and outside the palace, he often came to take a look at the property that his biological mother gave him as a dowry. Seeing things and thinking about people is a way to use this place to be quiet and meet some people who are inconvenient to contact in public.
However, sometimes when faced with difficult decisions or helpless matters, Shen Bo would come here, outside the house where his biological mother lived before she left the house.
Such as this day.
Shen Bo was dressed in casual clothes, leaning on the glazed couch next to the west window, resting his arm on his pillow, staring blankly at the gloomy clouds outside the window... Recently, he always remembered that many years ago, his biological mother Zhou Baolin was still there. At that time, Baolin's favorite thing was to hold him against the couch by the west window and watch the clouds in the afternoon light.
Shen Bo, who was only four or five years old at that time, was held in the arms of his mother-in-law. Smelling the fragrance of her clothes, she felt that the whole world was so peaceful and peaceful.
But this kind of peace and tranquility disappeared after one day Queen Gu led people into Weiyue Palace and dragged Zhou Baolin away.
Later, he had another concubine, Mrs. Zhenyi. Mrs. Zhenyi had no sons and was not bad to him. But not long after he was adopted, something happened to Mrs. Zhenyi. Although she was not as miserable as Zhou Baolin, she also fell out of favor and had no time to take care of herself, let alone protect her adopted son. Moreover, Mrs. Zhenyi was very gentle to Shen Bo during the days before she fell out of favor, but she never held him on the couch by the west window, looked at the clouds all afternoon, and told him all kinds of things in the gentlest whispers. Interesting story... Mrs. Zhenyi didn't know much about literacy and couldn't tell many stories. Moreover, she didn't like to watch clouds, and she didn't know that Zhou Baolin had a hobby of watching clouds with his son.
After that, he nominally had an adoptive mother, Mrs. Zhenyi, and a legitimate mother, Empress Gu, but in fact, he knew very well that he had nothing. At the critical moment, Mrs. Zhenyi's most distressed daughter was her biological daughter, Princess Anji, and Empress Gu was her mother's enemy... Then After that, whenever he wanted to look at the clouds from the west window, Shen Bo could only find a trace of peace by returning to this house and on the couch where his mother often lay before leaving the pavilion...
In a heavenly home where flesh and blood love is as indifferent as water, this trace of peace is so precious and rare.
So often when I come to the Expo, I don’t want to leave.
What's more, in this situation, even if he returns to the East Palace, he doesn't know what to do
He tried his best to marry the crown prince, but he married the wrong person; he really liked the girl he took as his concubine, and even became pregnant with his own flesh and blood, but he was suspected by the emperor; in name, both the emperor and the ministers allowed the prince to listen to the government. However, she was suppressed and guarded by Empress Gu before and had never been exposed to political affairs. Now that the world is in chaos, Shenbo is completely helpless in the face of mountains of official documents and urgent documents that continue to fly in like snowflakes.
At this moment, he suddenly had a little understanding of his father who was still in the mood to enjoy singing and dancing in the harem, and flirting with the young and beautiful concubines: Who is the master of others who doesn't want to become a wise king and virtuous person who will be passed down for generations to come? host? But unfortunately, he wanted to kill the thief, but he was unable to save his life... Faced with the war-torn world, Shen Bo felt at a loss and powerless.
I think it was the same when the Holy Emperor ascended the throne... It's not that I don't want to be a wise king, it's precisely because I want to be a wise king, so when I see the corruption and decadence of the whole world, but my own talents are not enough to turn the tide, the weakness that comes from the bottom of my heart... It's better to get drunk. , it’s better not to watch…
How could Grand Master Duanmu Xing and Situ Weiyu, veterans of political affairs for many years, be tortured by the current situation to the point where they have been ill and struggling to support themselves, let alone Shen Bo, who is young and has no political experience
But there is still a trace of clarity in Shen Bo's heart, which prevents him from being like His Majesty, who immediately wants to use wine and beauty to forget this desperate world.
He just wants to lie down and keep lying down...
He didn't know how long it took before he felt his sleeve being gently pulled.
A layer of anger immediately surged between Shen Bo's brows, and he asked without looking at the chamberlain who was kneeling tremblingly beside the couch: "What's the matter?!"
"Your Highness, the palace door is about to close. If Your Highness wants to stay here for the night, will you send someone back to let me know?" The servant was brought here because he was a close confidant of Shenbo. He knew that His Highness the Crown Prince was in a particularly bad mood today. , so that I usually just lie down for an hour or two before getting up, but today I lay down for a whole day without eating or drinking, which must be a huge worry. It was really dangerous for his life to bother him, but he didn't dare not say, "After all, the Queen's place..."
Empress Gu's biological son was usurped by Shen Bo. Although this cannot be entirely blamed on Shen Bo, it is also due to Shen Xun's own failure. However, Shen Xun moved out of the East Palace and was replaced by Shen Bo. The latter's biological mother still died at his own hands. Yes, one can imagine the Queen's disgust and defense against Shen Bo.
Staying out all night like today, and being caught by Queen Gu, might cause another disturbance...
After all, it has only been a short-term investment bank and its foundation is not strong. Although the queen only has one biological son, Shen Xun, there are still several princes in the palace. The former prince Shen Xun was unworthy, but his son Shen Lin was said to be very smart...
Concubine Deng Guifei has long warned Shenbo to be careful in sailing the ship of ten thousand years, and never relax until she ascends the throne!
The chamberlain had also been warned by the imperial concubine to remind his master at all times, so he took the risk of pulling up his sleeves to regain Shen Bo's mind.
When Shen Bo thought of Empress Gu, the anger between his brows became even stronger, and he couldn't help but clenched his fists... The servant fell to the ground in fear, waiting for orders.
After a long while, when there were wet marks on the chamberlain's robes, the prince heard the prince say very tiredly: "Send someone to tell the palace gate that there is still Mother Deng."
"Yes!" The chamberlain secretly breathed a sigh of relief and hurried out to give the order. When he came back to serve, he saw that Shen Bo had slowly sat up from the couch - because he had been lying in the same position for too long, he was obviously sore and numb. , so the movement is very slow.
The chamberlain took the jade hammer from nearby with a wink, quickly walked forward and knelt beside the couch, and beat Shen Bo's arms and legs.
Shen Bo closed his eyes and let him beat him for a while, then said: "Okay."
He stood up, moved his hands and feet, and the chamberlain asked cautiously: "Your Highness, it's getting late. Your Highness came out of the palace this morning and hasn't eaten yet. Is it... do you need something?"
Shen Bo shook his head. The chamberlain wanted to be brave enough to persuade him again but heard him say quietly: "Shi An, have you been serving Gu Ye for more than ten years?"
The chamberlain Shi An was startled, and then said: "As for your Highness, I have the honor to serve Your Highness for fifteen years and seven months."
"Fifteen years and seven months? You slave has a good memory." Shen Bo squinted but didn't look at him. He just stared at the candlelight not far away and murmured, "I still remember you." You were the little chambermaid who ran errands for me, but because I helped you catch a sparrow, I liked it very much, so my concubine gave you to me."
Shi An lowered his head and said in panic, "Yes." After thinking for a while, he added, "Your Highness also has a very good memory."
The concubine Shen Bo mentioned was not Zhou Baolin, but Mrs. Zhenyi.
After Zhou Baolin's accident, the palace servants who served her either went to serve others or were buried with her. Not even Shenbo's wet nurse stayed - Mrs. Zhenyi was still in her prime at that time, so Queen Gu was selling her a favor by doing this.
However, Shen Bo, who had just lost his biological mother, was silent and smileless when he arrived in Doujin Palace. Mrs. Zhenyi regarded him as someone to rely on in old age and tried every means to make him happy, but she always failed. One day, Shi An, who was still a young chamberlain, caught a sparrow and wanted to take it to the kitchen. Suddenly he saw the eleventh prince standing in the corridor, quietly looking at the struggling sparrow in his hand without blinking. .
Shi An also tried his luck and stepped forward to offer the sparrow to him. Unexpectedly, the colorful parrot that Mrs. Zhenyi specially collected, which could speak and sing, failed to attract Shen Bo's interest. Instead, it turned out to be an ordinary sparrow that Shen Bo held in his hand and caressed for a while before he smiled.
After Mrs. Zhenyi found out, she assigned Shi An to serve Shen Bo without saying a word.
Even though Mrs. Zhenyi soon fell out of favor, Shi An always carefully served this master... Initially, for the sake of the warmth that had not been extinguished in the palace, he couldn't bear to neglect the young and helpless Shen Bo; The prince gradually gained the attention and love of the Holy Emperor, and no one among the attendants dared to be disrespectful. However, Shi An, because of his warmth and responsibility in times of adversity, became the confidant of the prince who was notoriously difficult to serve...
Shen Bo suddenly thought of this past event. Shi An didn't know why, but felt a heartbeat for no reason...
But I heard Shen Bo say: "Do you know why I let the parrots in the palace go without teasing me in the first place, but I prefer the bird you caught?"
Shi An said tremblingly: "This slave is stupid."
"Because I used to be held by my biological mother under the west window and look at the clouds. The thing I saw the most was the sparrow." Shen Bo smiled lowly, with a strange and complicated expression, and said, "I also heard people say that sparrows can't fly high. Yes, do you know?”
Before Shi An could answer, Shen Bo said, "How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan? Isn't that what this sentence means? Gu... is actually just a sparrow."
"Your Highness is a noble person in the sky. How can you compare a sparrow with a swan?" Shi Anxin was startled and said hurriedly, "Your Highness is a dragon and a phoenix among men!"
"Dragon and Phoenix?" Shen Bo looked at the candlelight, but just sighed, "I wish I were a dragon and phoenix... What a pity... What a pity!"
Shi An felt cold sweat dripping from his clothes, and was racking his brains to think of how to answer the call, when he heard Shen Bo say: "It's just that ants are greedy for life, not to mention the chaffinch, which is much bigger than the ants? You said... Really?" "
"...Gege...Ge..." Shi An wanted to say something, but felt that he couldn't say a word. He heard all the bones in his body trembling! (To be continued)