grasshopper parasites
Nangong Jingnv was reviewing the memorials in the hidden study, and Nangong asked him to rest in the bedroom.
Since she secretly took over the affairs of the court, Si Jiu has followed her. This loyal servant who has served Nangong Rang for more than 40 years now spends most of his time by Nangong Jing's side under Nangong Rang's advice.
To this day, Nangong Jingnu probably understands the intentions of her father and emperor, but she can't believe that this path will be successful. After all, since ancient times, men are superior to women, so how could it be possible for a woman to be the emperor? Presumably the father and emperor also knew this, so they set up layer after layer of blindfolds to confuse the courtiers' perception.
A guard hurriedly walked on the palace road, and the boundary of Ganquan Palace was blocked by other guards. I saw that man took out a small token from his arms and shook it in front of the two guards blocking the road. The latter hurriedly put down their weapons and saluted, "Sir, please."
The man remained silent, passed between the two guards with a "swoosh", and quickly disappeared around the corner.
Outside the main hall of Ganquan Palace, a young housekeeper is guarding the door. He is the "god" son of Sijiu, the head of the housekeeper. Nangong Rang is loyal to Sijiu and has no children. A few years ago, he specially selected from the family of Sijiu. A nephew with a wife and children entered the palace and gave him the name: Chen Chuansi.
Although Si Jiu is a family son, but two generations are pushed up with the surname Chen. Chen Chuansi served by Si Jiu's side for two years, Si Jiu treated him very well, and now he is the only person in the inner court.
After all, Si Jiu was too old, and he was afraid that he would not be able to serve Nangong Jingnu until the end, so he recruited his godson to take his place slowly.
The guard came to Chen Chuansi, and the two seemed to know each other. They glanced at each other, and Chen Chuansi pushed open the small door of the main hall and entered.
After a while, he leaned out halfway through the small door: "Come in."
The two came to the side hall together, and Si Jiu waited there.
The guard didn't bow and salute until he saw Sijiu, and took out a brocade box from his arms: "Sir, this is from 'over there'."
Si Jiu raised his eyelids, and with a "hmm" sound, Chen Chuansi took the brocade box and opened it in front of the two of them, touching the contents inside. After confirming that the box had no hidden weapons, and that the contents were not poisoned, they handed it over to Sijiu.
Forty-nine took the thing but didn't look at it, but said coldly, "You go down first."
The guards and Chen Chuansi greeted An, bowed and left.
Only then did Si Jiu take out what was inside. It was a piece of white coarse cloth, the texture was a little yellow, and it looked like a dishcloth.
Shake it open and see that there are two lines of small characters written with charcoal or grass and wood ash, and the font is a little crooked.
Si Jiu's drooping eyelids opened, and he folded the cloth and put it back into the wooden box.
"Tuk Tuk Tuk"
Nangong Jingnu heard the knock on the door, put the brush on the inkstone, and pulled the yellow silk on the side to cover what she wrote: "Come in."
Sijiu came to the desk and bowed respectfully: "Your Highness, the secret guard at the private house."
Nangong Jingnu's heart lake was rippling again, but the expression on her face did not change at all, she said lightly, "Let's put it down."
Sijiu: "Yes." He put the wooden box on the table and pushed it again, making sure it was within reach of Nangong Jingnu, then stood up straight, bowed again, and walked out silently.
Nangong Jingnv's gaze swept across the wooden box, but she tore off the yellow silk covering the memorial, took the writing brush and returned to the posture before Si Jiu came in.
After a few breaths, Nangong Jingnu's pupils shrank, and a drop of bright red cinnabar juice fell from the tip of the pen and hit the memorial.
In an instant, it turned into a dot the size of a copper coin, which seemed a bit dazzling.
Nangong Jingnu took a deep breath and had no choice but to put the brush down again. No matter how calm she pretended to be on the surface, her heart was already disturbed when the secret report arrived. Even if she deliberately pretended not to care, she couldn't concentrate.
She can deceive forty-nine, but she can't deceive herself.
Nangong Jingnu leaned back on the back of the chair, and the wooden box quietly stopped in her sight, which contained the information of the private house.
Nangong Jingnu only found out about the fact that the father had placed eyeliner in his private house. It was the day when I was shocked to hear that Qi Yan was raising a child in a private house and entered the palace to beg her father and told her.
So there is no disgust or opposition, she and Qi Yan have come to such a point.
Nangong Jingnu leaned over and took the brocade box in front of her, took out the contents and shook them away.
This morning, the backyard of the private house was startled by the sound of crying, and the servant asked while Mrs. Wen was having dinner, and learned that a pair of twins, a dragon and a phoenix, were born in the backyard. under the tree. The slave Guan Wenpo's eyes flickered, as if there were hidden feelings.
…
When Nangong Jingnu came back to her senses, the cloth in her hand was already wrinkled. She bit her lip and took a blank memorial and tore it open, took a palm-sized piece of paper and wrote: Check.
…
Two hours ago, Qi Yan was pushed out of the delivery room by Mother Wen, and half an hour later, there was another burst of crying in the delivery room.
Granny Wen wiped her sweat and walked out of the delivery room with a strange expression, she looked up at Qi Yan's amber eyes and couldn't help but wonder in her heart: "Congratulations, Master, Hexi, Madam Zun gave birth to a pair of twins. "The second half of the sentence was forcibly held back by Po Wen: The eyes of the children are exactly the same as the master's, they are all amber.
With a cold face, Qi Yan took out an ingot from her cuff and threw it to Granny Wen: "To reward you, it's better for the old man to stay overnight. I'll send someone to take you back tomorrow morning, and there will be a gift for you."
This woman has been in this business for most of her life, and she has never seen such a generous master. She hurriedly bowed and shouted, "Thank you, sir, you are really a bodhisattva. I forgive my old lady for saying something inappropriate, respecting my frail body. , the pair of dragon and phoenix twins are afraid of insufficient milk. I wonder if the master has hired a nurse? My ancestors handed down a formula for breastfeeding. If the master does not dislike it, I will copy it and leave it to the kitchen later. The boy with the first child of twins is very strong, and the second girl seems to be a little weaker, so please be careful."
Qi Yan nodded, but her expression did not change: "It's hard work, please go to the side courtyard to rest."
Qi Yan pushed the door and entered the room. The air was filled with a faint smell of blood. Even so, the windows in the room were closed and a charcoal basin was placed in front of the bed. The temperature in the air was very high.
The dumb female servant girl was wiping Xiaodie's cheek with a hot clean cloth. One of the servant girls saw Qi Yan come in and pushed her companion, and the two of them knelt down in front of Qi Yan.
Qi Yan waved his hand, and the two retreated.
Xiaodie fell asleep quietly, she was very tired, the two children tossed all her energy, but fortunately she was fine.
There were two swaddling clothes beside the bed, one was a red one that was prepared first, and the other was a lake blue one that was temporarily pulled over to make up the number.
No one would have thought that Xiaodie, with such a thin body, was actually pregnant with twins.
Looking at the three people on the bed, Qi Yan's eyes suddenly became wet - Xiaodie, who was extremely tired, did not press on any of the swaddling clothes. Her body was in the shape of a "bow", and she protected the two swaddling clothes in her arms, completely unconscious. the behavior of.
Qi Yan was overwhelmed with emotion, and instantly recalled the scene where her mother dragged her heavy body to pack her and her sister's luggage when the plow was about to break. Her mother had never read any books, but at the last moment she came up with the idea abruptly. In order to make their sisters run south, looking back now, it was indeed her mother's plan that saved her life.
The same is true of Xiaodie today. Her mind is still recovering and her body is extremely exhausted. She instinctively protects the two children in her arms.
Women are weak, but mothers are strong.
The swaddling clothes were one big and one small, and the first-born brother was covered in red satin. She looked a little older. She was looking around with amber eyes. She forgot where she had seen it before: a newborn baby can't see Yeah, I don't know what the kid is looking at.
And the lake blue swaddle is more than a circle smaller, as Po Wen said: This is a frail child, it is not easy to have two children with Xiaodie's small body, and both children survived. Perhaps thanks to the strong blood of the prairie people, my sister slept soundly, lying quietly in her mother's arms.
Qi Yan walked over and looked down at the boy in the red swaddle. Those amber eyes were exactly the same as her own.
Qi Yan's eyes were dark and her expression was a little heavy: the two children had amber eyes, but Xiaodie's eyes were black...
So the eyes of these two children are because they inherited their mother's grassland bloodline? Or is the man who hurt Xiaodie actually a prairie? !
Thinking of this, Qi Yan's fists clenched suddenly, thinking of the group of prairie people who were buried alive by her. If it's really one of them...
Qi Yan can't wait to fly back to Jinzhou now, to dig up the land and smash the people inside to ashes. Do they even know who this girl is? Qiyan Nuomin, the most precious princess in the plow department!
Qi Yan's body swayed, and she had to suppress the idea that she could only stop at the "guessing" stage. She didn't want to make a deep distinction. The people of Wei Guo have always been her enemies, but... If the one who hurt Xiaodie is My fellow, what should I do with her? !
Qi Yan took a deep breath, slowly exhaled the turbid air in her chest, and leaned down to hug the red swaddle.
The dough, which was unusually soft to the touch, with a hint of milky fragrance, also pushed Qi Yan's hard heart.
Qi Yan turned around and wanted to leave, took a few steps and looked back. On the bed was a mother and daughter sleeping, defenseless.
She did not go out of the house, but went directly behind the screen, and there was half a bucket of cold water in the wooden barrel.
Qi Yan looked down at the baby boy in her arms, and the little guy stared at her with watery eyes. Qi Yan felt that her heart was stabbed heavily, and for a moment she was even a little shaken.
Qi Yan put the swaddle on the small table beside him, untied the swaddle, the baby's arm was exposed, and the thick and fat lotus arm waved cheerfully at herself, Qi Yan's eyes immediately turned red, don't He opened his face, pressed the baby with one hand, and his shoulders trembled.
Qi Yan put her other hand on her lips, opened her mouth and bit it, tears overflowing from her eyes, big drops flowing down. She was eight years old when the accident happened in the grassland, and she remembered many things.
Because the grasslands spend half a year hunting and fighting, the survival rate of babies is very low, and males who can hunt and fight are even more precious.
Every time there is a war between tribes, the captured pregnant women will be treated very well, and there will even be strong warriors vying to marry them back home. The child will also be brought back to the family as soon as possible, and will be re-named and raised as her own child. If this incident happened to Xiaodie in the grassland, she would still be able to find the bravest husband, and the two children will be safe and sound. grow up…
After all, it's you who is dirty.
She has been immersed in too much Wei culture, so she feels that the child born from the humiliation cannot be kept...
and…
The matter of Xiaodie has been exposed for more than half a year, and the document for the recognition of Xiaodie's identity has not been sent by the Inner Court Division.
Qi Yan learned from Nangong Shunv: Nangong Jingnv kept Xiaodie on the grounds that she could not give birth... Then, now that the eldest son is born, according to the laws of the Wei Kingdom, it is very likely that the child will be left to the mother, and the boy will be recorded in Nangong Under the knees of the static girl, as the eldest son of the concubine and the princess...
With Nangong Jing's love for Nangong Jingnu, it is absolutely impossible to keep Xiaodie.
After all, Nangong Jingnv's eldest son who "can't give birth" will become her mother's food town. If the new monarch takes the throne and makes Nangong Jingnv, the only direct-born princess, the eldest princess, her first son will be the county king.
Furthermore, Nangong Jingnu owns ten thousand households of food, and Nangong Rang and Xinjun will never allow this boy to have two mothers.
Qi Yan let go of her mouth, and there was a deep tooth mark on the back of her hand, oozing blood, she turned her head, there were still tears in the corners of her eyes, but her eyes became determined.
Qi Yan picked up the naked baby and burst into tears again. She hated her incompetence and weakness. If she could have been more ruthless at the beginning, and the plan of revenge was carried out faster, would she be able to take her away when she found Xiaodie again
Or... if she woke up earlier and cultivated her own power, she wouldn't have to push Xiaodie and herself into such an involuntary desperate situation
In the final analysis, the tragedy more than ten years ago was beyond her own control, but now all these things are caused by her weakness and incompetence. She can't bear to see Nangong Jingnu being hurt, and she always wants her to be harmed. Happiness and happiness can be maintained for a while longer, just dragging and dragging like this... In the end, I can only suffer the consequences, but it is not myself who will be punished, but her innocent and bruised sister!
Qi Yan sniffed: This blood debt, I will definitely get it back.
Qi Yan's face was reflected in the wooden barrel, and there was a scar on the left cheek, which was left to save Nangong Jingnu, and from now on... there will be no more.
This child is unusually well-behaved, snuggling quietly in Qi Yan's arms, staring at a pair of amber eyes to explore everything around him.
With a sound of "dong", the originally calm water stirred up, and Qi Yan threw the baby boy into the wooden bucket. A scene that she never expected happened. The child opened his eyes and closed his mouth and nose in the water, kicked his legs...
Is the newborn actually water-permeable? I saw the baby kicked it all over, its round head with a few strands of fetal hair surfaced out of the water, Qi Yan's body swayed, looking at the excited expression of the baby playing in the water, her heart seemed to be run over by a grinder...
Qi Yan pressed the baby down several times, but all of them came up without exception, and let out a cheerful laugh, as if playing a game with Qi Yan.
Qi Yan looked at the baby playing in the water in the wooden bucket for a long time, looking at his eyes that were exactly the same as her own, and finally fished the baby out of the water, she called Qian Yuan, found a piece of rag to wrap the baby, and put it away. In the food box, I took a few hundred taels of silver notes and put them together with a wooden rabbit carving.
Qian Yuan was puzzled and asked, "Master, who are you?"
Qi Yan snapped the lid of the food box with her own hands: "You personally send this child out of the capital, the farther away the better, and if you find a good and secluded family, you will say that the child was abandoned because of his ominous eyes, and the old lady in the family. I couldn't bear it, I sent the child away overnight, and the five hundred taels of silver bills were used as a reward for raising this child safely."
Qian Yuan couldn't hold back and asked, "Master, why are you doing this? This is your eldest son!"
Qi Yan looked at Qian Yuan and said seriously: "You know my identity, Nei Tingsi has never acknowledged Xiaodie's identity. Once the inner court finds out that we have a boy, we will definitely go to the mother to keep the child... I don't want the child to be alone. Born without a mother, this is the only bloodline of my Qi family, so I will entrust it to you!"
After Qian Yuan heard this, he knelt on the ground with a "thump": "Don't worry, sir, the villain must properly place the young master!"
Qi Yan helped Qian Yuan up, thought for a while, and again instructed: "You must find someone who is honest and responsible, and inquire about it. If the male owner of the family has a bad habit of drinking and gambling, you can't choose it."
Qian Yuan: "Don't worry, Master, I understand."
Qi Yan: "Also, warn them a few words, saying that the 'Old Madam' loves the youngest grandson and will send someone over to watch the child. If the child goes wrong, they must be buried with the whole family!"
Qian Yuan: "Yes."
Qi Yan: "...in order to prevent these silver notes from attracting the coveted, you go to get some silver coins and a few copper coins and take them out together, remember that the farther the child is, the better, and don't tell anyone the address when you come back, including me. "
Qian Yuan: "Yes. If the master has no other orders, the little one will go now?"
Qi Yan: "Hold on, let me think again..."
After a few breaths, Qi Yan instructed again: "When you come back, secretly inquire along the way to see if you have bought the body of the baby boy who died."
…
After Qian Yuan left, Qi Yan wrapped the package again, took a hoe and dug a deep hole under the tree in the small courtyard, put the swaddle in and spread a layer of oil paper on it, and then carefully sprinkled the soil finely. On top, completely buried.
This is not for anything else. If the oil paper is torn or missing, she will know that someone has moved here, so she can make plans.
In the Wei Kingdom, infants who died prematurely were considered unlucky, and most of them were put in boxes or swept up with grass and thrown at the mass graves, but Qi Yan ordered people to buy incense candles and other items, and set up a small mourning hall under the tree. The news spread quickly... The twins of the dragon and the phoenix failed to save a child, and it was difficult for the cook to have a happy event or a funeral, and hurriedly ordered a few pieces of tofu to make a funeral meal.
Qi Yan washed her hands and returned to Xiaodie's room. Xiaodie had already woken up and was nursing the child. Qi Yan turned around subconsciously, thinking that she was also a daughter, and it seemed that there was no need for this, so she naturally sat beside the bed.
Xiaodie was still a little weak, but there was more maternal brilliance between her brows. She smiled at Qiyan and called out, "Brother~."
Qi Yan raised her hand to straighten the messy hair on Xiaodie's forehead, and said softly, "It's hard work, does it hurt?"
Xiaodie shook her head and nodded again. She looked down at the swaddle. The little guy was eating hard with his eyes closed. In Qi Yan's view, this was a very miraculous thing. No one had taught Xiaodie how to do it. She But know to feed the baby.
Xiaodie: "Brother~, did you say that when my mother gave birth to us, it was so hard?"
A burst of thunder exploded in Qi Yan's mind, and she stared at Xiaodie: Because she was young that year, and was stimulated later, Xiaodie was very vague about what happened in the past. She only remembered the family's totem, and she gradually remembered herself after getting along for more than half a year. She seldom mentioned the past.
Qi Yan: "Xiaodie... you?"
Xiaodie raised her head: "What's wrong? Brother."
Qi Yan: "What do you remember?"
Xiaodie's eyes flashed with confusion, she blinked and suddenly asked in her native language, "When will A-Niang and Dad come to pick us up?"
Qi Yan covered Xiaodie's mouth, surprised and happy.
Listening to my sister's question, it seems that her memory has not recovered, but at least she has been able to find the starting point of her memory! In the past, Xiaodie's memory was like a mess, often confused.
Does this mean that my sister may recover slowly? !
Seeing Xiaodie looking at her with a puzzled expression, Qi Yan slowly released her palm and replied in her native language, "Xiaodie, brother, let me tell you a story."
In the story, Qi Yan forged a "beautiful" fact.
She told Xiaodie that they jumped off a cliff together to avoid the pursuit and were fortunate to be rescued by an expert. But Xiaodie's head was hit, and she has been in a daze all these years, and her memory is sometimes confused.
The ploughing department is still there, and Aba, Ama and Bayin also live well on the grassland, but their "brothers and sisters" cannot go back for the time being. She also married a woman from Wei State, because the two countries were at war, so they could not reveal their identity as grassland people, and they could go home only when the time was right.
Qi Yan's lie was very clumsy, she was even worried that Xiaodie would not believe it, but after Qi Yan finished speaking, Xiaodie frowned and murmured, "Why don't I remember what my brother said? I remember..." Xiaodie tried hard Thinking, but can't think of anything.
Qi Yan hurriedly said: "Didn't my brother tell you? You have been sick all these years and have hysteria! Many things in your memory are false, don't you believe your brother?"
Xiaodie's expression was a little anxious: "Of course I believe my brother!"
Qi Yan felt ashamed, holding back her tears, she raised her hand and touched Xiaodie's cheek: "Sister, you have to remember. We are not allowed to talk about grasslands on the land of Wei Kingdom, nor can we talk about the past. , let no one find out that we are the Dangli royal family. There are many things that happened later, my brother will tell you slowly, but in their opinion, we are husband and wife, and this child is also our daughter. "
The more Xiaodie listened, the more confused she became: "But we are brothers and sisters..."
Qi Yan: "You should remember what my brother said first. My name is Qi Yan, and you can call me Yuanjun. Your name is Xiaodie, and there is no surname. You will call me 'Yuanjun' in the future. You can't call me brother again before you go home!"
Xiaodie seemed a little unhappy, and nodded silently.
After thinking for a while, he asked, "Brother... Yuanjun, you married a woman from the Wei state. What will she do when we return to the grassland?"
Qi Yan opened her mouth, looking at her sister speechless.
Xiaodie thought seriously for "sister-in-law" for a moment, and said, "Mother is also from Wei State, although we are fighting on both sides, brother, if Yuanjun brings her back, Mom and Dad will like her."