Days go by, and soon it is the Spring Festival. The Spring Festival is the first day of the year, when everyone will reunite with their families, forget all the troubles of the past year, and then look forward to the new year with full expectation.
Everyone was immersed in the joy of family reunion, except for Prince Ling's Mansion.
Not to mention the bustle in Prince Ling's Mansion, the air pressure was even lower than usual at this time of year. Everyone had to hold their breath and dare not make any mistakes. They were extremely cautious for fear of displeasing the prince and getting punished. Even Qi Han Wangchen and the others didn't dare to say a word.
Xiao Weixin went to the palace to pay his respects early in the morning, and his face did not look good when he left.
You Shu knew why.
When the old emperor was still ill, Xiao Weixin was only eighteen years old and had just moved out of the palace. However, he would still go to the palace every day to pay his respects to the virtuous concubine and talk to her.
Although the old emperor was in very poor health at that time, he could still survive for a while. Xiao Weishen was not yet the crown prince. Although the old emperor doted on his mother, he was obsessed with the late queen. As a result, the position of crown prince had been vacant. His unreliable behavior caused his sons to be confused and think that they had a chance to sit on that throne.
Xiao Weishen has the greatest power. In order to avoid any further trouble, at the instigation of his mother, Concubine Xia, and his uncle, he takes a risk and even plans to kill the old emperor who is still lingering on.
For the sake of the throne, Xiao Weishen had long forgotten about father and son and brothers. One day, when he came to visit, he and Concubine Xia suffocated him to death.
However, all this was seen by Concubine Xian who came to take care of her. In order to silence her, Xiao Weishen followed the panicked Concubine Xian all the way back to the palace, strangled her with a white silk and hung her on the beam, creating the illusion that Concubine Xian was willing to die for love.
They thought they had done everything perfectly, but they didn't expect to be seen by the personal maid beside Concubine Xian. When Xiao Weixin rushed into the palace at night, only his mother's cold body greeted him.
That day also happened to be the Spring Festival, the first day of the Lunar New Year.
Listening to the little palace maid lying on the ground crying and telling him the truth, Xiao Weixin had red eyes and could not sleep all night. If Xie Feiyuan had not held him down, he would have fought with Xiao Weishen and his mother immediately, even if he died, he would have avenged his mother.
But he was still very weak at that time. Although the Shadow Guard Camp had begun to take shape, it was still far from being a force to be reckoned with. Xiao Weixin could only swallow his blood and pretend to be ignorant of the matter while burying his mother. Afterwards, he knelt in front of the ranking for three days without getting up.
You Shu put himself in Xiao Weixin's shoes and thought that if he had witnessed his mother being brutally murdered when he was 18, he would definitely not be able to endure it like this. Therefore, he understood Xiao Weixin's pain very well. He was just an adult at that time and thought that everything would go in a good direction. He fantasized that after he opened his own government, he could take his mother out of the palace and live a free and happy life. However, he did not expect that misfortune would overturn all his hopes.
Xiao Weixin had no intention of seizing the throne at first, and all he did was to protect himself. However, because of his mother's tragic death, he vowed to seize the world and make Xiao Weishen and his mother die a miserable death.
It can be said that everything that happened afterwards was Xiao Weishen’s own fault.
You Shu calculated the time. It has been more than an hour since Xiao Weixin entered the palace. He estimated that he would be back in half an hour. The book mentioned that this time the queen would mention his marriage with Xia Yinxiu again. He didn't know if the two of them fell in love with each other.
Just as You Shu had imagined, Xiao Weixin was being forced to become a matchmaker in the palace, and the queen was trying hard to promote her sister.
Xia Yinxiu and Xiao Weixin sat opposite each other below the Queen, one on each side. Both of them had expressions of being forced to go on a blind date as if they had lost all hope in life. Xia Yinxiu secretly glanced at Xiao Weixin, thinking that this man was really as handsome as the rumors said. His looks and temperament were rare in the world. However, he never even glanced at her from beginning to end, and seemed to look down on her.
Xia Yinxiu was not favored at home. Madam Xia was jealous and aggressive. Although she did not abuse her concubine's children, she had no love for them. They were all raised by a foster nanny. No one in the mansion could get close to her except the queen. Therefore, Xia Yinxiu longed for others' love. Xiao Weixin's disdainful attitude towards her made her confused and helpless. She could only bow her head and remain silent, and she was somewhat resistant to the marriage arranged by her sister.
Xiao Weixin was very impatient. He had no problem with Xia Yinxiu, but he also didn't like her dignified demeanor as a lady from a wealthy family. He especially hated the Xia family and Xiao Weixin's ulterior motives in this marriage, and he even disliked Queen Xia.
She is just a self-righteous woman.
Queen Xia spoke to herself, but it was obvious that the two of them had no interest at all. She was the only one who was interested in the whole thing.
But she didn't understand what was wrong with Yinxiu. She was the girl she had personally trained. She was a living miniature of herself. In every aspect, she was one of the best among the famous families in Beijing. What on earth did Xiao Weixin not like about her
Xiao Weixin sat there for a while and felt a little impatient. He had planned to pay his respects to Queen Mother Xia as usual and then go back, but he didn't expect to be stopped by Queen Xia and was delayed for so long. Hearing her intentionally or unintentionally praising Xia Yinxiu and trying to facilitate their marriage, he felt nothing but sneer and disgust in his heart.
No one from the Xia family will ever be able to enter his mansion in this lifetime, not even concubines are worthy.
He stood up and interrupted Queen Xia, saying coldly that he was not feeling well and needed to go back to rest. Queen Xia had no choice but to let him go, but her eyes showed reluctance to let him go.
Xia Yinxiu watched quietly for a while, and suddenly felt a little frightened. Could it be that her sister... admired His Royal Highness Ling Wang
What would happen if the emperor knew about this
She wanted to give some words of comfort, but Queen Xia didn't want to listen, and asked her to leave with red eyes. Xia Yinxiu didn't know how to deal with this matter, so she had to leave the palace first, determined to keep her sister's selfishness in her heart and not tell anyone.
After leaving the palace, Xiao Weixin went straight back to his mansion, dismissed all the servants, and knelt alone in the ancestral hall for a long time.
The first day of the first lunar month every year should be his mother's death anniversary, but he cannot hold a memorial service openly. Xiao Weishen has been suspicious for years, wondering whether he knows the truth about Concubine Xian's death that year, and he always deliberately tests him from time to time.
Therefore, he could only think about it secretly in his heart on this day, and he had to grit his teeth and put on a smile to go to the palace to celebrate the New Year.
Xiao Weixin looked up at his mother's seat on the stage with red eyes. He had never forgotten the hatred he had felt over the years. He had already waited for five years, so one more year wouldn't make a difference.
Compared to Xiao Weixin's bad mood, the atmosphere in the Shadow Guard Camp can be considered peaceful. Another year of living on the edge of a knife has passed, and everyone cherishes the days when they are still alive, and they are happy every day.
The air was filled with the sweet aroma of melons and fruits. You Shu was sitting cross-legged on the bed playing cards with Ying Wu. He was very skilled and had never lost. Ying Wu was scratching his head anxiously as he was about to lose his pants.
Ying Si, while eating melon seeds, suggested that everyone go to a brothel together. Since they were free anyway, they might as well go out and have fun together.
No one else had any objections. It was so hard to get back on vacation, so who wouldn't want to indulge themselves? Everyone decided readily. The prince wouldn't summon them today anyway, so as long as they kept a low profile when going out, there wouldn't be any big problems.
You Shu didn't want to go, but he couldn't resist the instigation of others. They deliberately provoked him by saying that he had never seen the world and must not be a normal man. Although this provocation was very low-level, You Shu still felt insulted.
Haha, you bunch of ancient people who have never seen the world. The pornographic comics I read in my previous life are taller than you when piled up together. Who are you looking down on
In order to prove himself, You Shu changed his clothes and slipped out of the palace through the back door with them in the evening.
There were a lot of people on the streets on the first day of the new year, and it became even more lively after the curfew was lifted at night. You Shu had a tall and handsome figure, and he was very eye-catching in the crowd. The other shadow guards were not bad looking either, but they all had a bit of a ruffian air, and from a distance, people thought they were a group of playboys.
Ying Si took them to the Bai Xiang Lou restaurant they often visited. Upon hearing the name, You Shu couldn't help wanting to eat passion fruit, which was his favorite fruit to use to make tea.
The consumption level of Baixianglou is considered mid-range. This group of people dare not go to high-end places for fear of running into powerful people. The girls here are certainly not as high-quality as those in high-end places like Tingyuelou, but they are better than beautiful girls from small families, so it is suitable even to go there to listen to some folk songs.
Ying Si's lover is a girl named Cui Niang. She is not very famous and is a bit old, but her voice is gentle and quiet. She doesn't sound like a prostitute at all. Ying Si smiles from ear to ear when he sees her and wishes to give her everything he has.
Everyone else joined in the joke, but they also found a lover to sit with them. They basically didn't play randomly, and usually had fixed playmates, which was a bit like a couple.
You Shu couldn't quite adapt to all this. Although not all women in brothels were prostitutes, he always felt guilty.
This street is full of flowers. Tingyue Tower is not very far away from them, but the clear difference can be seen from the carriage at the door.
You Shu only ordered a girl to sing, and lay by the window looking down bored, wondering in his mind how Xiao Weixin was doing today. He spent this day alone every year, and when the heroine came home this summer, he wouldn't have to be lonely anymore, right
As expected, the male protagonists in most novels have a rough life experience, otherwise where would they get the motivation to pursue a career.
Unlike him, he was born to be a careerist.
You Shu was lost in thought when he suddenly saw a little girl in green clothes standing in front of a window on the second floor of Tingyue Tower. The girl just opened the window and saw him when she looked up.
You Shu recognized the girl. She was the one he had ordered when he was listening to music at Tingyue Tower last time. Her name seemed to be Luying. When she caught a glimpse of You Shu, her eyes lit up and she gave him a sweet smile.
You Shu was stunned, turned around and poked Ying Wu who was excitedly playing the rock-paper-scissors game with the girl, "How do you think of my face now?"
Yingwu turned around and rolled his eyes with great effort: "I know you are beautiful, stop showing off!"
You Shu nodded.
That's right, the face he was wearing now was indeed his own, unlike the human skin mask he wore last time. Luying should not have recognized him.
I must have said hello because he looked so handsome.