Looking at the soaring fire that seemed to be compressed into a small ball, Ji Jiu suddenly felt depressed. He couldn't do this kind of retrograde thing. He was just a mortal, and he couldn't do many things. For example, the strange scene in front of him should have caused an uproar in the camp, but now it was silent, as if he was the only one left in the whole world. These fires, these smokes, including Ji Jiu himself, seem to be in another mysterious space, making people want to ask: Who am I
With such confusion in my heart, another voice came out, lingering in my mind, as if answering: It's Ji Jiu.
It's Ji Jiu. Ji Jiu sat on the ground slumped, straightened up again after a brief period of confusion, washed up, and went to bed. A night without dreams.
Apart from military affairs every day, Ji Jiu finds other things to do, such as facing something that he has been unwilling to face—the past life. A person who is about to turn 30 starts to follow clues to search for his ethereal past life. Ji Jiu finds it ridiculous when he thinks about it. A person who doesn't believe in gods and Buddhas has lived for twenty years. Seeing a person whose body is half buried in the ground, he begins to delve into his past life. No matter who you say this to, it will make you laugh out loud. But there is no way to do this. If you walk too much at night, you will always encounter ghosts. Ji Jiu didn't believe it before, but now he does. Where to start, he already had a plan in his mind, it was impossible to ask the monster, he still had nothing to say to him, and this month, the monster didn't come any more. The Taoist priest went wandering, even if he was found, he would not say it, Ji Jiu is not such a dirty person, he was arrested and tortured to extract a confession, after all, he is a Taoist priest, a person out of the world. The only clue left was Shen Jue.
Then let's start with Shen Jue.
Ji Jiu made up his mind, instead of trying to scare the snake away, he called in a large number of military documents and found the one with Shen Jue in it. Double death.
Holding the thick copy, Ji Jiu pondered for a long time, took a pen and paper, and transcribed the words "Na Yongcheng" in a correct manner.
Looking through the documents of the rest of the soldiers, there are more than a dozen family members in Yongcheng in the barracks, and young people don't want to know much. In the end, Ji Jiu locked his eyes on two people, one is a veteran of the kitchen, and the other is guarding the forage field. There is always a way to deal with things, Ji Jiu decided to use his own way to find those past events that do not exist in memory. Finally willing to face all this, perhaps because of the blood spreading all over the bed, or perhaps because of the suspicion caused by the arms that were too tight around him.
Shen Jue came in suddenly and announced that someone was coming to see him.
Ji Jiu concealed the messy documents on the case and ordered him to bring them.
The visitor was a Qingshan guest who met once in the imperial city. Ji Jiu was slightly stunned, and quickly laughed: "Lord Shen." His eyes were calmly sizing up at the popular man next to the emperor in front of him, the counselor Shen Hai. Speaking of which, Ji's family also raised a lot of followers, all of them were full of talent and learning, and those with outstanding behaviors passed the imperial examination, so they each sought their own jobs, but no one knew that they were former followers of Ji's family. The imprint of the Ji family may be erased one day when the Ji family collapses. This person in front of him is the emperor's retainer. Their status is quite different from that of ordinary diners. There is almost no need to guess about their future, and Jincan can be seen with the naked eye. It's just that the current emperor has not given him a real job. It's better not to have an official job. There are some things that an official can't do, but it's easier to do with a title of counselor.
Ji Jiu thought, he finally has his own confidant. But that person is no longer Ji Jiu.
Shen Hai saluted, and said, "General Ji is safe and sound."
Ji Jiu invited him to a seat, ordered him to serve tea, and said, "Very good."
Shen Hai looked at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled: "Why does the general call me your lord? You don't even ask me why I came here."
Ji Jiu just smiled, but said nothing, looking at him sharply and sharply. After being in the army for a long time, he has already cultivated the calmness and calmness unique to generals, but he is fierce and old-fashioned. Most people can't stand under his eyes. The person in front of him was sitting peacefully with a calm expression, but Ji Jiu saw a trace of depression through his stretched face. This is a man with a story. Looking at his calmness and the deep depression behind his calmness, Ji Jiu thought he was carrying something. Otherwise, why would such a person use tricks to become the emperor's inner secretary instead of going to the imperial court to seek fame. Who doesn't know that being with you is like being with a tiger.
The two looked at each other for a moment, Shen Hai lowered his eyes first, and said: "Since this is the case, general, I will tell you the truth. It is rumored that the army has started recruiting soldiers in recent months. The emperor asked me to ask a question."
Ji Jiu said: "The paper has been written, but it has not been sent up yet. Now that your lord is here, it would be more convenient to present the paper to the emperor."
Shen Hai was stunned for a moment, obviously he didn't expect him to say this, and blurted out: "The general is not afraid that the emperor will become suspicious and take away the general seal of the Ji family."
Ji Jiu smiled and said, "If it's that simple, why bother to let the adults make this trip?"
Shen Hai was silent when he heard the words, and then he also laughed, and said: "I won't give you the booklet for my lord, my lord, please follow me to the imperial city. The emperor is waiting for you."
Ji Jiu didn't hesitate, and immediately agreed. The departure time was set for the next day, and Shen Jue went with her.
The majestic palaces of the imperial city are like a picture scroll, gradually revealing before the eyes, like thick ink in the gradually withered landscape after autumn, Ji Jiu stood outside the city and looked up, remembering that he was here when he was a hot-blooded boy , go hand in hand with the emperor on the Dragon Throne today, help him ascend to the throne of God, help him sit in the mountains and rivers, and then today, and even in the future, it is time for him to leave the stage. A melancholy slipped out of my heart.
Shen Hai was beside him, and he didn't say a word. When he woke up, the three of them started on the road again.
Shen Jue was waiting outside the palace gate, Ji Jiu and Shen Hai went to the study, Ji Jiu was also waiting outside the imperial study, Shen Hai went in first, after about a cup of tea, Shen Hai came out, and called Ji Jiu in, but he himself Return.
The eunuchs invited him in, and then retreated silently, leaving only Ji Jiu and the emperor in the huge imperial study room.
The emperor fell in front of the case and never raised his head. Ji Jiu knelt down on one knee and stopped making a sound. The two monarchs and ministers seemed to be in a silent stalemate, and seemed to be in tacit agreement, waiting for the other party to make the first move.
After a long time, the emperor threw the cinnabar pen, and Long Yan said coldly: "Are you here to kneel down for me to see?"
This time there was no one else in the room, Ji Jiu said: "What does the emperor want?"
"Ji Jiu!" The emperor waved his sleeves and got up, walked in front of him, looked down at the top of the black hair, "Are you tired of being a general by recruiting troops without authorization?!"
"Return to Your Majesty," Ji Jiu said lightly, "I dare not."
"Don't you dare?" The emperor rolled his lips and smiled sarcastically: "Is there anything in this world that you Ji Jiu dare not? This is the first time I've heard of it."
"Your Majesty." Ji Jiu took out the long-awaited memorial, "The memorial to the minister's expansion has already been drawn up, but the weather is not good, and it has been raining for half a month, so the memorial has been postponed."
"In this way, it means that heaven forbids you to pass on the memorial." The emperor picked up the memorial, threw it on the dragon table aside, and said slowly: "It can be seen that heaven forbids you to expand your army."
Ji Jiu was still calm, and said: "The army has expanded, it must be because God did not allow the emperor to receive the memorial immediately."
In a word, the betting emperor was choked up and his face turned blue, but the kneeling man kept his head down and didn't even look at him, as if he hadn't noticed anything, and pretended to be decent. You see, if you lose your temper with the air, it has nothing to do with me! This set of Ji Jiu has been used for more than ten years, the emperor thought, why is it still used today? I really didn't improve. I calmed down my anger and let him stand up.
After getting up, Ji Jiu still lowered his head, looking trembling, standing there holding his breath, as if he had infinite fear and obedience, with his head lowered, leaving only one forehead for the emperor to see, and the emperor looked at it again. When she gets angry, who wants to see how docile she pretends to be! Couldn't help stretching out his hand to pinch his jaw, forcing the general to raise his face, look straight at him, and said in a sinister voice, "You've made progress!"
Ji Jiu looked at the emperor flatly, his voice was still so annoying and tepid, "I'm terrified."
The emperor spat in his heart, and couldn't help but said: "Three years have passed, and you can't forget it?"
Ji Jiu tilted his head slightly, shook the hand clamped on his jaw, without even picking his eyelids, "What's the matter?"
The emperor was bored, and after a while he whispered: "Do you think I don't want to keep them?" Then he stopped talking.
Ji Jiu finally turned around and remained silent. The fire three years ago burned down the main hall of the harem, and also burned a dozen princes and nobles in the hall who were seeking business. There was even Ji Jiu who finally fell silent as he stared at the flames. At that time, he was still naive, always thinking that even in the family of an emperor, the rules of human relations are necessary, but he never believed that the person he was a companion and wholeheartedly assisting when he was young would have such a cruel time. From then on, Xu also realized that one day, they would stand in opposing positions. Either the emperor killed his courtiers, or the courtiers plotted rebellion!
Ji Jiu lowered his eyes, "It's all over, I don't remember."
The emperor turned around, but couldn't see his expression clearly, only heard a sigh, vaguely: "Xiao Jiu, you are going to leave me eventually."
The general didn't say a word, but at the end, he replied: "The emperor will no longer need me one day."
The emperor turned around abruptly, and said in a chiselled voice, "No!"
Ji Jiu was silent again. There is only a slight movement of the airflow between the two, and the floating dust drifts. After a long time, Ji Jiu said, "I don't believe it."
The emperor stared: "I am the monarch of the world, do you dare not believe it?!"
Ji Jiu looked at him for a moment, then looked away, "I don't believe the king who is bickering with me here."
The emperor was speechless. Ji Jiu was speechless after finishing speaking.
After a while, the emperor went back to sit in front of the dragon chair in anger, picked up the cinnabar pen, threw it aside, picked up the memorial, opened it and threw it away. After several times in a row, he pointed to the dim sum in the glass cup on the table and said: "You like Biyun gauze cake, go eat it."
Ji Jiu complied and sat aside, eating some snacks. After eating two pieces, he put down the pastry and took a sip of tea, and sat upright.
The emperor had calmed down at this moment, opened his memorial, looked at it for a while and said: "You don't need to worry about the recruitment and training of soldiers, the old general will take care of it, Ji Jiu..."
Ji Jiu got up, lifted his robe and knelt down, saying: "The minister is here."
"I will give you another two thousand elite soldiers, how about it?"
Ji Jiu was stunned: "What's the use?"
"It is said that the king's court of the Huns is behind the vast desert, and no one has found the road there. I want you to lead the troops there and draw the map." The emperor raised his eyes, his eyes were cold and majestic: "You have to pacify the north. Jiang, how can you not know the way?"
Ji Jiu knelt there, and it took a while to make a sound. There was a subtle excitement in his voice, "I obey the order. It's just that two thousand soldiers are too much, and the supply of food and grass is a problem. Five hundred elite soldiers are enough."
The emperor was stunned for a moment, "Five hundred? Are you going to die?"
"It's nothing, the minister and his subordinates are pretending to be merchants." Ji Jiu didn't care.
"Really five hundred?" The emperor still hesitated.
"Really." Ji Jiu said. In fact, I still feel more in my heart.
That's it.
Standing up again, the emperor approved the memorial and asked him to sit aside for a while, and he still had something to say. Ji Jiu didn't know what was going on, so she sat back again, ate snacks and drank tea, satiate her stomach, and then felt suddenly stunned, rushing all the way back, she was already quite tired, now that the big things are over, she was relieved , and his appetite has recovered, Ji Jiu sees that the emperor still doesn't lift his head, apparently still busy for a while, so he rests with his hands on his forehead, accidentally takes a nap, and falls asleep.
When I woke up, I found myself lying on a soft couch with a quilt covering my body. The quilt was bright yellow, embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, and there was incense burning on the wooden table beside me, and green smoke curled up. Ji Jiu stared sleepily for a moment, then sat up in a trance, and found someone beside him when he moved, turned his head and saw that the emperor was sitting on the side in a dragon robe, disheveled, holding a memorial in his hand, leaning against the head of the bed, With the quilt on her knees, seeing him awake, she squinted from behind the memorial and said, "Have you slept well?"
Ji Jiu looked at him, seemingly in a daze.
The emperor kicked him under the quilt and became impatient, "Are you awake?"
Ji Jiu said "hmm" in a sleepwalking voice: "I'm awake."
"hungry?"
"Yeah." Just after the answer, Ji Jiu shuddered, fully awake, feeling bad, got up quickly, knelt down beside the bed and said: "Your Majesty, please punish me for being rude."
The emperor ignored him, let him kneel, and ordered the eunuchs to move the small table and put it on the dragon bed. The eunuchs lowered their heads, arranged the utensils on the table, bowed and retreated silently. Only then did he say: "Get up, I haven't eaten yet. Let's eat together."
Ji Jiu had no choice but to get up, and stood aside to take the bowls and chopsticks. The emperor scolded angrily, "Sit down!"
Ji Jiu sat down, next to the edge of the bed.
The monarchs and ministers ate in silence, and the emperor suddenly said, "I heard that there are more people in your tent at night."
Ji Jiu was eating his meal respectfully, when he heard such a sentence suddenly, the porridge he just swallowed almost spewed out. Swallowing it quickly, coughing like crazy.
Seeing that his eyes were red from coughing, the emperor remained calm and said calmly, "Some people say that he looks like a man, when will you be able to do this?"
Ji Jiu shook his head and waved his hands while coughing, obviously in denial.
Seeing that he was coughing hard, the emperor kindly stretched out his hand and patted his back, "It seems to be true, so frightened."
It doesn't matter if he doesn't talk, Ji Jiu's cough becomes worse when he talks about it, and he almost loses his breath.
The emperor stopped talking.
Ji Jiu covered his throat, and it took him a long time to slow down, and said calmly, "I don't like masculinity."
The emperor snorted, "I know, otherwise..." Otherwise, he didn't say anything.
Ji Jiu turned his face away, pretending to be indifferent, and drank the porridge quickly, just wanting to escape quickly. The emperor can still see through this thought, so he is not allowed to escape. The emperor said: "I asked you that day, what is the next sentence of 'Repay it with Qiongjiu'? You said that your general is illiterate, so you rejected it. Today I'll ask you again, how are you going to answer?"
Putting down the bowl and chopsticks in his hand, Ji Jiu said seriously: "I don't know anything."
"Ignorance?" The emperor's face turned cold, and he smiled suddenly. He asked someone to remove the table above the bed, got up and put down the curtain, and took off his robe, "Have you ever been really ignorant?"
Ji Jiu froze for a moment, seeing that his expression was serious, he seemed to be serious, and quickly said: "Your Majesty!"
As soon as the words fell, he was hugged.
Ji Jiu froze in his mind, subconsciously grabbed his shoulder, and pushed him away, "Your Majesty!"
The emperor was pushed a bit, and became annoyed. He narrowed his eyes and said solemnly: "How dare you push me?!"
Ji Jiu's hand outstretched in the air froze suddenly, and then slowly withdrew it, "Don't dare." After a short pause, he said again: "I am not a child molester in the emperor's harem."
The emperor said: "I know better than you." Seeing that Ji Jiu's expression was stiff, he eased up and said, "So what if you just stay by my side?"
Ji Jiu lowered her head and said calmly: "Ji Jiu can only be the emperor's general, and the battlefield is the fate of the minister. If he stays by the emperor's side, Ji Jiu is not Ji Jiu."
The emperor was silent for a while, took his hand and sat down, rubbed it on the callused hand, then clenched his hand again, and said, "If it's not Ji Jiu, who is it?"
Who could it be
He is the emperor in the palace, everyone submits to him and fears him. But in this world, is there anyone like Ji Jiu who is willing to show some sincerity in front of him. The emperor asked: If it's not Ji Jiu, who is it
Ji Jiu looked at him, feeling a little dazed, as if he was still the prince who was bullied many years ago, his companion was punished, and the two bruised teenagers cuddled on the same bed, comforting and relying on each other.
At that time, the bed was not bright yellow, there was no majestic dragon pattern, no solemn carving, it was simple and even dilapidated. On that day, the young Ji Jiu made an oath: I must help you sit on the throne, why? They can sit, but you can't! That day's prince, with red eyes and an expression of forbearance and fragility, was also resolute and resolute, and said seriously: If I become the emperor, I will definitely ask you to be my general, and I will give you the world's soldiers and horses!
Afterwards, the oaths were verified one by one, but Ji Jiu was not that reckless Ji Jiu, and the emperor was no longer that pitiful boy.
The support of youth has changed, so even those indifferent ambiguities have long since changed. Ji Jiu thought, if he hadn't been enthroned as emperor, maybe, maybe, maybe it was true, there was still a possibility for them to continue their ambiguity.
It's just that now, the emperor is the emperor, and the courtiers are courtiers. Although they are all concerned about their former affection, they don't know when it started, and they start to be wary of each other. That bit of ambiguity has long since dissipated without a trace.
Tightening his hand tightly, Ji Jiu said: "If the emperor is willing to treat each other sincerely, how can there be no one who treats him sincerely?" But that person is definitely not Ji Jiu.
The emperor said: "I don't treat you well?" For so many years, he has relied on him and protected him, and everyone can see that the emperor loves this former companion. He didn't appreciate it.
Ji Jiu said: "What the emperor wants is not Ji Jiu."
"Nonsense. How can I not know what I want?"
"The emperor wants Ji Jiu for you to calm the world, not Ji Jiu who serves by your pillow." Ji Jiu pulled out her hand and said, "Does the emperor think he wants Ji Jiu? What the emperor wants is the couple from ten years ago." Just a teenager."
After a short pause, Ji Jiu said again: "Youth will eventually grow up."
The words moved his mind, the emperor sat up straight, and without saying anything else, he hugged the general in front of him and hugged him in his arms, as if embracing the unrecognizable past, embracing those youthful and frivolous people who had once been, embracing him. A good time is fading away.
Ji Jiu didn't move at all, with a peaceful expression, only showing a little tiredness.
Growing up is also a kind of tiredness. It's just that when I was young, I didn't know this.
At this moment, there was a sudden wind, and the candles shook. Ji Jiu shivered, turned over and drew out the sword hanging from the rack, and stood in front of the emperor. His speed can be called extremely fast, but he is not as fast as others.
The moment the candle flickered, the emperor was knocked down by something and fell on the bed, and then his throat was tightly strangled.
When Ji Jiu saw it clearly, she hurriedly shouted: "Shen Jue is presumptuous!"
The young man who appeared suddenly had red eyes and a murderous look, but after hearing this sound, he let go of his hand.
The emperor narrowly escaped death, holding his throat in shock and anger, but he didn't show any signs, and asked coldly, "Who are you?"
Ji Jiu quickly knelt down, "Your Majesty, this is the bodyguard of the minister. His reckless temper and dull mind have frightened the emperor, and the minister is willing to accept the crime!"
As soon as the emperor heard it, he knew that he was trying to excuse him. After a moment of silence, he said abruptly, "This is your 'man in the tent' at night?"
Ji Jiu was stunned for a while, before he could defend himself, Shen Jue said angrily: "Nonsense, don't slander me... my general!"
The hesitation in his words was clearly heard by the two old and cunning people. The emperor pondered for a moment and said: "The palace is heavily guarded, how did you get in?"
This time Ji Jiu took over the conversation, pulled Shen Jue to his knees and said: "He is an orphan, wandering around without care and care, and has learned some tricks..." The emperor interrupted him, pointing at Shen Jue: " I let him speak!"
Shen Jue glanced at his father, and could only follow his words, admitting that he had learned some "devious ways".
The emperor straightened his clothes and sat up, looked at the two and said with a smile, "It's very interesting. Ji Jiu, go down and rest first."
Ji Jiu's face turned pale: "Your Majesty!"
"What? Could it be that he still wants to kill me after you're gone?" the emperor said, seeing Ji Jiu's face froze again, he also froze his smile, and said after a while: "Since Ai Qing refuses to follow me, why not?" How about letting him follow me?"
Ji Jiu stood up abruptly: "No!"
The emperor's eyes became gloomy upon hearing this, and he looked at him and asked, "No?"
Shen Jue also got up, tugged at the hem of Ji Jiu's robe, "Don't worry, general, the general will be fine."
Ji Jiu said decisively: "No!"
Shen Jue was stunned for a moment: "It's nothing, the general will go back."
The emperor said: "Ji Jiu, really think I dare not touch you?!"
Ji Jiu stood for a while, drew his sword, threw it on the ground, and said in a hateful voice, "I am willing to be punished for my adopted son!" The sword edge on the ground was shining brightly, shining silver and white in front of the eyes of the three of them, full of murderous aura.
Shen Jue smiled suddenly, with a handsome smile, his brows and eyes were a little more childish, and he said, "Father."
Ji Jiu glared at him, and responded stiffly.
The emperor's expression was unpredictable, and he said: "Why don't I know that Aiqing has adopted a foster son?"
Shen Jue said, "Father, let's go, the baby is fine."
Ji Jiu ignored him.
Shen Jue hastily said again: "It's really nothing," looked at the emperor again, and said with a bit of disdain: "It's just an emperor."
The emperor had never heard anyone comment on him like this, and he stayed where he was for a moment, speechless.
Ji Jiu quickly reprimanded: "Shut up!"
It was a complete mess.