The drizzle covered the sky and covered the sky, and once the wind passed, the front of the corridor was slanted, and the clothes were covered in waves.
Looking out from a distance, the flat road is faint, and there is no one there. Thousands of miles of smoke and waves are heavy, and the light boat is alone. Ye Tianhao stood in front of the post station and looked at the calm and calm ferry. It had been raining for a few days, and a few pink and light white apricots fell after the rain, and drifted eastward. There are also patches of falling cherry blossoms on the wooden stack that has experienced years of wind and rain, and the plain white ones are just like the coldness of the imperial capital in mourning.
Ye Tianhao sighed slightly, since ancient times, the concubine was so unlucky, thinking that the lotus noble concubine crowned the world, her beauty was peerless, but now, once the spring is over, the beauty fades away, and the flower falls and the person dies.
King Ling and the others said that they arrived at Tiandu today, but they still didn't see the boat docking at noon. It was probably because of the wind and rain, and Qing Chen couldn't be tired, so he slowed down a bit.
Ye Tianhao's elegant and gentle brows were covered with a layer of haze, which made him look a little more vicissitudes and stability than before, but the deep worry appeared flat in his distant eyes.
It is suicide! When the news came out from Lianchi Palace, it happened to be discussing the politics of the early court. His father, who was as calm as a mountain, was tall and majestic and calm, almost staggered back to the palace.
There was an uproar in the Taisho Palace. As we all know, at the spring banquet in the imperial garden the day before, Concubine Lian was too indifferent, which made Empress Yin very dissatisfied.
Concubine Lian was as indifferent as usual at the time, but unexpectedly the next morning, she was found by the palace servants and committed suicide, and her personal maid, Ying'er, died as well.
The cold rain permeated the entire Lotus Pond Palace, deep in the palace and secluded halls, and the chill was oppressive. The lotus carvings are exquisite and beautiful, the curtain is deep, and when people go to the empty building, a few ice strings cover the light dust, quiet and cold.
The Emperor of Heaven was so angry that he reprimanded Empress Yin for her immorality, and almost wanted to abolish her. Empress Yin resented and hated, and was very angry. After thirty years of husband and wife, thirty years of favor, she said that she was honored by the mother's ceremonies, but in the end, all the beautiful scenery was empty.
The flower in the mirror, the shadow in the water, the woman in the lotus pond palace is the one who is truly loved by thousands, who has taken the colors of the sun and the moon, and is only called a harem.
After the abolition, the court was in an uproar over such a trivial matter.
Empress Yin has been with her attendants since the day Emperor Longqian, she has always been of good character, how can she be dismissed lightly because of a woman who shouldn't have appeared in the Dazheng Palace
One faction of the Yin family is willing to give advice one after another in order to appease the wrath of the Emperor of Heaven, but there are naturally many people with ulterior motives in the court who intend to bring down the empress, the strongest backer of the Yin family, and the disputes are fierce for a while.
Contrary to everyone's expectations, at this time Zhongshu Ling Fengyan, who should be the most troublesome person, put on a badge of protecting the queen.
When Empress Xiaozhen was alive, Empress Yin, who was still a noble concubine, fought openly and secretly with her. Originally, the Feng family had the upper hand because Empress Xiaozhen was in the middle palace, but after the death of Empress Xiaozhen, Empress Yin was in charge of the sixth palace, and no one could cover her edge for a while. Now that there is such a good opportunity to bring down Empress Yin, what Yin Jiaben is most worried about is Feng Yan making use of the problem, who would have thought that he would get such a badge.
The words are sincere and reasonable, like a flat step sent to the emperor of heaven. The words of the important ministers of the auxiliary country still have extraordinary weight.
Thinking back afterwards, Wei Zongping couldn't help sweating, Feng Yan, he had already seen that the Emperor of Heaven was just venting his anger for a while, and he didn't decide to abolish the empress. With a better decision. After fighting for so many years, he suddenly felt powerless at this moment!
The ministers saw it more clearly, just like when they insisted on going their own way and marrying his wife as a concubine, from the time of enthronement to the present, Concubine Lian's weight in the heart of the Emperor has never changed, so many people thought of King Ling and the reserve. .
But Concubine Lian is gone after all, and although the queen has been wronged, it is worthwhile to think about it. The mother and concubine passed away, and no matter where the prince was, he had to go back to Beijing to mourn. The battle in Mobei was imminent. As a result, the command of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses fell into the hands of King Zhan. Compared with the capricious favor, this is real military power.
The slanting rain hits the face, and it is slightly cool for a while. The guard reminded softly: "Your Highness, why don't you wait in the post house, King Ling and the others must wait a while before they arrive."
Ye Tianhao nodded, but only walked a few steps casually, and suddenly remembered that there were several officials from the Ministry of Rites and Emperor Zongsi who came with him, so he said to the guards: "Please come in, my lords. You don't have to wait here."
However, if he didn't leave, no one would move. He smiled slightly, and went inside with his hands behind his back.
The post house had already prepared some hot tea for serving, Ye Tianhao just brought the teacup to his lips and put it down. Perhaps because of the funeral after all, everyone seemed a little dull, but most of them were thinking about King Ling who was about to return to the capital, and occasionally someone whispered a few words.
Ye Tianhao has long been familiar with the fact that the government and the public made wild speculations about the royal family. He just sat there quietly holding the teacup, and kept looking out the window with peaceful eyes.
The powder rain was fine, and it was about to stop. He sighed silently, wondering what his fourth brother would do when he came back. The bottomless deep pool of Tianjia is full of gnawing whirlpools everywhere, he struggled out of it after going through pain to the bones, and gave up so many things that people dream of, but he still often has no peace. This road is hard to see the end, if there is no heart as cold as iron, it will be a dead zone of despair and madness.
"Your Highness." The guard's voice interrupted Ye Tianhao's contemplation, "King Ling's boat has arrived."
Finally arrived, Ye Tianhao got up and walked out quickly.
The rain has stopped, and the sky is overcast, slowly moving with the wind, and the river is surging, slapping the shore from time to time. The two-story boat was particularly eye-catching among other small boats. Ye Tianling turned around and personally helped Qing Chen get off the boat. In the breeze, he was dressed in a white shirt and looked handsome and cold.
"Fourth brother!"
Ye Tianling turned around, brought his wife and went up to meet the emperor's brother, Ye Tianhao raised his hand and gave him a little help: "I thought you would be here in the morning, how are you doing?"
Ye Tianling said: "Brother Lao Huang is thinking about it, the journey went smoothly, it's just that Qing Chen worked harder."
Qing Chen wore a cloud-colored cloak, his face was thin, his black temples were slanted, and the only aqua-colored jade hairpin lined his hair, and his whole body was plain. She stood quietly beside Ye Tianling, and smiled faintly when she heard the words, but saw that the people from the Emperor Zongsi had already prepared the filial piety clothes. The white hemp cut the scorpion, and it was customary for the mother to return to the funeral of the child, and the ceremony was completed. It is necessary to wear a filial piety before entering the heavenly capital.
The servant holding the filial piety instrument stepped forward and knelt down, respectfully inviting King Ling and the concubine to enter the filial piety. Ye Tianling lowered his eyes and looked: "No need." The voice was indifferent.
The officials of the Emperor Zongsi and the Ministry of Rituals were listening, and they were taken aback at the same time. Although King Ling and the concubine were dressed in white, they were not filial piety after all.
"Your Highness... I'm afraid..." Kuang Zhongwei, a doctor in the Ministry of Rites, reminded cautiously. When Ye Tianling looked up, his heart trembled slightly.
Although Ye Tianhao knew that his fourth brother and Concubine Lian had always been estranged, he was speechless about his unfeeling. After pondering for a while, he waved lightly to Kuangwei, ordered him to back down, and asked Ye Tianling, "Is the concubine noble? Yiling Xuansheng Palace, should the fourth brother return to the mansion first, or go to Xuansheng Palace first?"
Ye Tianling turned his head to look at Qing Chen, Qing Chen was looking away from the turbulent river, met his slightly concerned eyes, and said, "Go to Xuansheng Palace."
Ye Tianling thought for a while, nodded and said: "Then please go back with them, Brother Huang."
The sky is low and the clouds are dense, and the Xuansheng Palace with golden tiles seems to be hidden in the misty haze, quiet and solemn.
In front of the hall and behind the hall, the pear blossoms that were originally snow-pressed in the spring garden have already passed their flowering period. With the pattering rain for several days, the whole garden withered and turned into mud and dust.
All the maids were dismissed, making the palace courtyard seem more and more quiet. Zhu Lan propped up the eaves and stretched out to the gray sky alone. The stone steps of white marble, carved with flying clouds, were washed by the rain and were extraordinarily white. Looking at it, it was a little glaring.
Qing Chen and Ye Tianling walked to the front of the hall and stepped up the jade steps. Ye Tianling walked extremely slowly, looking ahead silently, this expression was just abnormally calm in the eyes of the servant who had just retreated, without filial piety, without mourning, only endless indifference.
On the last step, Ye Tianling stopped suddenly, Qing Chen took an extra step and turned to look at him. He raised his hand to support the white jade railing, stood outside the main hall door, and suddenly closed his eyes. He clenched his hand into a fist and pressed hard against the icy jade railing. A wisp of bright red blood quickly snaked down from between his fingers, outlining a bloodstain on the railing surrounded by flying clouds.
"Fourth brother!" Qing Chen whispered, and squeezed his hand to force him to let go. In the palm of his hand was a crystal lotus jade pendant. The pure white lotus petals were stained with blood, bringing out a coquettish blush, which was extremely beautiful.
Qing Chen hurriedly took out a silk handkerchief from his arms to wrap up his wound, feeling extremely distressed, but couldn't bear to speak out to blame him. Ye Tianling looked at her slender fingers intertwined between the silk handkerchiefs without moving, a tingling feeling was like a fountain gushing out at this moment, submerging all his consciousness very quickly and ruthlessly, even breathing find it difficult.
He clenched his fist subconsciously, and Qing Chen put his fingers into his palm lightly, stopping his movement. She said softly, "fourth brother, hold my hand."
Through the silk handkerchief, Ye Tianling could still feel the gentle warmth of Qing Chen's palm, Ye Tianling calmed down, finally looked at her, and said in a hoarse voice: "Qing'er, I won't go in, help me...give this lotus jade pendant to her." Mother Concubine."
Qing Chen didn't object, it only added to the sadness, why bother to meet each other, she carefully wiped off the blood on the jade lotus: "My concubine will feel distressed after seeing it."
Ye Tianling pursed his lips tightly, turned around slowly, and Qing Chen walked towards the hall alone.
Concubine Lian's coffin was made of ice jade, a whole piece of ice jade is rare, there is no such precedent in the royal family, even Empress Xiaozhen's funeral did not have this honor. But after the Emperor of Heaven made the decree, no one objected to it.
Perhaps in everyone's heart, only the incomparable face in the Lotus Pond Palace is worthy of this pure and icy beauty. Perhaps everyone also wants to preserve this peerless demeanor, let the years be ruthless and vicissitudes change, this sleeping beauty , will never grow old, will never wither.
After the clear ice, Concubine Lian lay quietly, the bright purple court dress made her skin more beautiful than snow, and her eyebrows were picturesque. Qing Chen took his steps lightly, as if afraid of waking her up from the dream without disputes and pains. Her lightly closed eyes were dark and shallow arcs, and her red lips were faintly smiling. This An Ran's sleeping face was beautiful. So peaceful, so peaceful. Time stopped behind the frozen jade, quietly leaving that peerless beauty in eternity.
The white mantle dances lightly, a little deeper.
Qing Chen bent over and solemnly performed the filial piety in front of the spirit, and said softly: "Mother, my fourth brother and I are back, don't blame the fourth brother for not coming in to see you, when he is sad, he just needs to be quiet by himself." It’s passable. There is one thing that you will be happy to hear. The fourth brother took Riguo City back from the Turks. He also went to Yaoyun Mountain and brought you a gift. We met a man in Mobei, his name is Wanqi Shuofeng is the flesh and blood of the sixth prince of the Rouran family and the current leader of Rouran. Rouran is not dead. Sooner or later, the land of Mobei will become prosperous and rich in the hands of the fourth brother and Wanqi Shuofeng. Don't worry." She stood up, took out the lotus jade pendant, and the slender silver chain collided with the ice jade, making a slight sound, "This is what Wanqi Shuofeng asked us to bring to you, Rouran didn't hate you, Wan Chengshuofeng said that you will always be Rouran's most beautiful woman, their Princess Jasmine."
Qing Chen walked to the ice jade coffin, stood still for a moment, raised his hand to caress the icy coffin lid, and with a little force, the coffin lid slowly slid open. The light mist lingered and escaped, and a piercing chill suddenly hit her face. She shivered slightly, and gently placed the lotus jade pendant on Concubine Lian's chest, and then carefully held the silver chain to put it on for her. . Unexpectedly, Concubine Lian Guifei's original overlapping collar was pulled, revealing her slender neck, and a constriction appeared.
The very faint constriction marks were particularly shocking in the tranquility of this snow-skinned and flowery appearance. Qing Chen felt sore in his heart, couldn't bear to look any longer, and hurriedly raised his hand to tidy it up, but suddenly his hands stopped and stopped there.
The constriction was caused by Bai Lian, it was not very obvious, she hesitated for a moment, frowned and pondered, then seemed to have made some decision, untied Concubine Lian's collar again, and looked at it carefully.
The constriction extends to the back of the neck! And next to this slightly pepper-colored constriction, there is still a bluish-white trace with almost no blood shade. Qing Chen trembled suddenly. It was absolutely impossible for this to be left by hanging himself. It was obvious that someone tightened Bai Lian from behind, and then tried to hang him in the air in order to create the illusion of hanging himself, so there were two different hangings. mark.
She could hardly believe the speculation in front of her, and stood on the spot for a while, until the colder and colder air in the jade coffin made her feel a little unbearable, then she trembled slightly and tidied Concubine Lian's clothes. She supported the jade coffin to suppress the shock in her heart, and a coldness gradually appeared in her eyes. It was homicide. These days, she has been unable to understand how Concubine Lian would commit suicide because of Queen Yin's few words of reprimand. All of this was planned by someone.
Is it the Yin family? Such an idea immediately flashed through her mind, and she immediately denied it. Although the Ye Tianzhan she knew had his strategy and determination, he would never use such a method to seize military power. Although the Yin family may be a hindrance, Ye Tianzhan has really become ruthless since the Yanliang incident happened. Mingyilou secretly got the news that Ye Tianzhan used some method to rectify the Yin family. Faced with his absoluteness, even Empress Yin did not dare to interfere. The successful punishment of Shao Xiubing and other generals this time is a good example.
King Zhan, who is well-known in Beijing, is still elegant and elegant, but the sharp sword behind his gentle back has been unsheathed. The first thing he faces is not an aggressive opponent, but a corrupt official family and high-ranking officials who are no longer usable. Even Ye Tianling secretly admired this. After all, not everyone has the courage and ability to deal with this tangled tree, not to mention that if you don't pay attention, you will tire yourself. Ye Tianzhan almost achieved this with perfect means. The current Yin family, Jin family and Wei family are being grasped step by step in his tightened palm, and they are gradually unable to allow them to struggle.
If it wasn't someone from King Zhan's side, then who would it be? Who would use such ruthless means, and why would they choose to attack Concubine Lian
Qing Chen raised his eyebrows slightly, Mingyan who was originally ordered to stay in Lianchi Palace has disappeared since the day of the accident, and Mingyilou has searched for it in many ways, but there is no news so far. It is extremely unusual that the person Mingyilou was looking for unexpectedly disappeared, not to mention that this person is Mingmai.
The death of Concubine Lian stopped Ye Tianling's progress in pacifying the northwest, and added new hatred between Ye Tianling, the Yin family and even King Zhan. This is the layout of sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers fight, Qing Chen thought to himself, but vaguely felt that something was wrong. But other than that, she couldn't find any motive for someone to kill Concubine Lian. Most importantly, who would be so clear about what Concubine Lian meant to Ye Tianling
The surrounding cold was getting heavier and heavier, Qing Chen gradually felt that the cold was severe, so he walked out quickly. As soon as he got out of the hall, he saw Ye Tianling standing on the top of the steps with his back on his back. The dark clouds in the sky were extremely low, and he was standing alone under the gray sky. He was dressed alone and looked cold.
The cold wind pushes the clouds to move slowly, and a few traces of flowers roll over, and there are still sporadic drops of rain.
Ye Tianling heard Qing Chen's footsteps, but he didn't turn his head. He stared at the colorless sky without moving, his eyes filled with bottomless and frozen loneliness.
"Fourth brother."
The wind was blowing slightly, and the coolness pierced through the bones. Qing Chen heard Ye Tianling say in a slow and desolate voice: "Master, eleventh brother, mother and concubine, they are all gone. Those who are close will go, those who are close will leave, and those who are close will leave. Alone to the end, this is the lone star covering the sun, and the sky is unparalleled."
Qing Chen's heart seemed to be pinned by a sharp dagger, and there was a sharp pain in his heart. She took a step forward, held Ye Tianling's hand tightly, and forced him to face her: "No! It's all nonsense to say that a lone star blocks out the sun. Fourth brother, you still have me. I If you don’t believe in this destiny, as long as I’m still by your side, you won’t be a lone star!”
Ye Tianling's eyes are deep and shallow, and there is an indescribable sadness, and even a trace of complicated emotions are revealed unexpectedly. He gently hugged Qing Chen into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head, and said in a hoarse voice, "Concubine Mother doesn't miss this world at all, she really doesn't want me this time, Qing'er, I only have you gone."
Qing Chen only felt that his whole body was cold, without a trace of warmth. She pulled away his arm slightly and looked up. On his thin face was a depression she had never seen before, and the haze in his eyes covered the starry sky like light clouds , The sky and the earth lost their color, and it was more like a tidal wave with icy ice, spreading along her blood, dragging the dull pain in her heart.
She was almost anxiously looking for the old look in his eyes. He just looked down at her, as if he wanted to take her into his heart. His quiet gaze softened the original cold outline, but it made people afraid . She squeezed his hand tightly and raised her eyebrows almost sharply: "Fourth brother! The concubine mother was killed, she didn't commit suicide!"
Ye Tianling's expression froze suddenly, and he asked hoarsely, "What did you say?"
"I've just seen it. The constriction mark intersects at the back of the neck. It can't be the mark left by suicide. The thing is strange. Why did the good mother and concubine commit suicide? She has listened to the cold words in the palace all her life. Does she still care about the queen? A few reprimands? And Ying'er, she is usually the most cheerful, how can she not only refuse to persuade her mother and concubine to die, but die as a martyr, what big things they can't think about?"
These words set off uncontrollable grief and anger in Ye Tianling's heart, and the rage in his eyes was turned upside down, like a whistling meteor crashing into the sky, suddenly igniting a raging fire. However, his whole body is calm and cold, with killing intent, gloomy and killing intent that makes people feel like falling into an ice cellar, severe and fierce, capable of piercing through everything without leaving a single piece.
He clenched his knuckles, and his thin lips showed a pale coldness: "Who did it?"
Qing Chen said: "First check the imperial doctor who came to Lianchi Palace. If he was either dereliction of duty, he was instigated by others to conceal the truth."
"Mingyan, it's impossible for her to know nothing about it." Ye Tianling said coldly: "Send all the people in Mingyi Building, Mingyao wants to see people when he is born, and sees corpses when he dies. Those who can commit murder in Lianchi Palace must be against the palace. The situation here is very familiar, and there must be other helpers, if you want to find the main culprit, start with these minions." There was a deep light in his eyes, sharp and compelling. At that moment, Qing Chen once again saw the man who looked down on the world. She was extremely familiar with that impeccable calmness, calmness and self-confidence in knowing everything in the palm of his hand.
The wind blew into his eyes and it was slightly cool, Qing Chen blinked lightly, only to feel his whole body relax, a feeling of regaining what was lost. She has never been so clear that he has become so deeply a part of her own flesh and blood, sharing joys and sorrows, life and death, every wave of fluctuation affects each other, and it is impossible for a person to live alone.
The cold wind blows, blowing the white curtain in front of the hall, turning it into a deep sea with waves. Old hatred and new hatred, full of grief, Ye Tianling's face was as frosty, and he said word by word: "I, Ye Tianling, will not avenge this revenge, and I swear I will not be a human being!"
(end of middle volume)
Drunken and Exquisite (Volume 2)
Copywriting:
Fendai Jiangshan left half of the lake misty and rainy.
The princely career is like a game of chessboard.