A Lei said to Zhu Zhanhe: "Why don't you let go!"
Zhu Zhanhe let go and lay back on the pillow with a wronged look on his face. "I hugged his waist and didn't touch his arm."
Arei looked at Zhu Zhanji with a questioning look.
Zhu Zhanji said shamelessly: "He didn't touch the wound. I accidentally touched it when I was struggling. Don't blame him."
What a white lotus in this prosperous age, so white and fragrant, yet everyone curses it.
"Just sit still. Let me untie the gauze and see if the stitches are really untied." Arei carefully untied the gauze and saw that the stitches used by the imperial doctors were entangled on his arm like centipede legs.
"Fortunately." A Lei wrapped the gauze again, "Otherwise you would have to suffer again."
Zhu Zhanji felt numb on his arm where A Lei had touched him, and he held the wooden ox even tighter, not wanting to give it back to his brother.
Zhu Zhanhe would never let his cousin blackmail him like this. "Give me the wooden ox."
Zhu Zhanji refused to let go and said to A Lei childishly, "I want one too."
A Lei was unhappy and took the wooden ox back to Zhu Zhanhe, "Am I the craftsman who makes watches for your Zhu family? There is only one."
Zhu Zhanji felt frustrated. If he continued talking, there would be another quarrel and it would be unpleasant. So he had to cut his losses in time and shut up.
Zhu Zhanhe proudly held the wooden ox up to show off, "Every hour on the hour, the wooden ox moves automatically, the mechanism on its back opens and closes, and a little shepherd boy playing the flute jumps out. This gift is unique, and my injury this time was not in vain."
A Lei said: "You should be careful next time. You are lucky this time. If you get hurt again, I won't give you anything."
Zhu Zhanji got nothing and was very disappointed. However, Zhu Zhanhe's injury was all caused by him, and he did it to protect himself. He couldn't be angry with Zhu Zhanhe, and he kept his resentment in his heart.
The two of them kept Zhu Zhanhe, who was unable to move, company. They had dinner here and ate together, talking and laughing, as if they were back in their childhood. After dinner, seeing that it was getting late and Zhu Zhanhe was a little exhausted due to his injury, Are said goodbye.
The palace gates have been closed, and she will sleep with Hu Shanwei tonight.
Zhu Zhanji said, "It's raining and snowing outside, and it's very cold. I'm afraid your coat won't be able to keep out the wind. Put on my fur coat."
Without giving Arei a chance to refuse, Zhu Zhanji put the cloak on her shoulders and pointed at the stove, "Hold another hand warmer."
When Zhu Zhanji was thinking of an excuse to personally send her off, a palace maid came in and said, "The road outside is starting to freeze. Concubine Hu ordered me to bring Miss Hu a red gorilla felt, a hand warmer, and clogs, and to escort Miss Hu back."
The harem is complicated. How could Hu Shanwei trust Arei? She had to make preparations early to avoid any accidents. She didn't want Arei to be involved with the harem.
Upon hearing this, Arei took off his cloak and said, "My sister has sent someone to pick you up. There's no need to trouble the Crown Prince."
Arei put on a big red gorilla felt, a Guanyin bag, and held a hand warmer, revealing only his little face. "You guys should rest early. I'm leaving."
Zhu Zhanhe lay on the pillow and shouted, "Come and see me early tomorrow!"
"Got it." Arei put on tortoise-shell glasses. Her eyesight was not good at night, but she could barely make do during the day.
As Arei stepped out of the palace, he saw rows of lanterns surrounding the Yongle Emperor's carriage in front of him. He hurriedly made way and stood aside to salute.
Emperor Yongle felt bad when he looked at his sons now, and didn't want to listen to the King of Han's argument. He was busy all day and braved the wind and snow to see his two grandsons.
Arei covered her face tightly, but her iconic glasses allowed Emperor Yongle to recognize her at a glance.
Seeing that she had grown into a big girl, Emperor Yongle, in order to avoid suspicion, did not tease her like he did when A Lei was a child. He granted A Lei a carriage and sent her back. "It's dark and the road is slippery. Don't let Miss Hu fall. Take the carriage back."
Arei thanked.
Emperor Yongle entered the room. It was exactly the same time as the day before. The big clock struck and the wooden ox on the table began to move. A shepherd boy popped out from its back. The two grandsons were so fascinated by the sight that they did not notice the movement at the door.
After a whole day of troubles, this wooden ox was a surprise. Emperor Yongle found it interesting but did not say anything so as not to disturb the moment of joy. After a minute, the wooden ox stopped and the shepherd boy shrank back. Zhu Zhanji could not let go of it and thought about how to trick the wooden ox away from his cousin.
Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and took away the wooden ox. Zhu Zhanji wondered who was so bold and turned around to see, "Grandpa..."
Emperor Yongle cordially comforted his two injured grandsons, and took the wooden ox "with him" when he left. Zhu Zhanhe dared to laugh but not to speak, trying to guard against fire, theft and his eldest cousin, but he did not expect that the emperor's grandfather would appear halfway.
It turns out that our Zhu family has been shameless for three generations.
Han Palace.
The sleet made the already gloomy atmosphere even more desolate. Ji Gang put a pile of confessions on the table, "The officials of your Han Palace are as loyal as those of the Eastern Palace. After the imperial prison was put under house arrest, no one slandered Your Highness in order to escape punishment. They all said that Your Highness was innocent and had nothing to do with the cannon explosion this morning."
The King of Han had expected this. He was not concerned about the lives of these officials. He asked, "How is my son?"
He was still worried about his eldest son. At that time, the King of Han already had eight sons. He always scolded his eldest son for being useless, but he actually liked Zhu Zhanhe the most.
Ji Gang thought, it seems that my choice not to marry and have children was right. The King of Han was a hero and ambitious, but in the end he could not escape the bondage of father and son.
Ji Gang said: "There is no new news from the palace. No news is good news. The prince should be fine."
Upon hearing this, the King of Han was obviously relaxed and said, "The Emperor still refuses to see me, but no one can frame me without any evidence."
Ji Gang shook his head repeatedly, "Your Highness, you still don't realize the seriousness of the matter. If this matter is not handled properly, Your Highness will never be able to recover."
The King of Han was like a trapped beast. "I am trapped in the palace and cannot even leave. What else can I do except to refuse to admit it? Am I going to throw dirty water on myself? My son was there at the time. Even a tiger won't eat its own cubs. How can I kill my own son? If my son misunderstands me, won't he hate me for the rest of his life? I won't sacrifice my son and my soldiers. I won't do it."
Ji Gang advised, "I'm not forcing Your Highness to admit it, but under the reality, you have to bow your head. The emperor has ordered me to release all the officials of the Eastern Palace from the imperial prison today and reinstate them. What does this mean? He didn't even say a word when Crown Prince Xie Jin froze to death. The emperor saw that the crown prince obeyed all his decisions and the Eastern Palace was controllable, so he released these people. Seeing that the Eastern Palace is about to make a comeback and is unstoppable, Your Highness the Prince of Han should avoid its edge, retreat in order to advance, and plan for the future."
The nearly desperate King of Han heard this as if he had seen a savior, "How should we retreat? How should we advance? Please give me some advice, Lord Ji."
Ji Gang was determined to instigate the Zhu family to commit suicide, hoping to muddy the waters. He said, "I am a humble official. I have barely served for three dynasties and have worked in the Imperial Guard for half my life. I have seen many royal secrets. I will tell you two secrets, and you will understand what I mean."
"The first thing is that during the Hongwu Dynasty, the King of Qin killed thirty-seven Jinyiwei and pulled out the tongue of the female official Liu Siyan, tricking the King of Qin's wife into eating it, driving her crazy."
The King of Han was incredulous. "The Second Imperial Uncle was indeed absurd. He colluded with Concubine Deng and harmed the people. When he died, Emperor Gaozu listed more than 20 crimes, but this one was never one of them."
Ji Gang said: "Historical books are just what the superiors want others to see. In fact, the historical records are just the tip of the iceberg. The truth is terrible. The historical records say that Concubine Deng committed suicide out of fear of punishment, but the truth is that Lord Mao and I followed the Emperor Gaozu's order and strangled Concubine Deng with our own hands to create the illusion of hanging."
"What I want to tell Your Highness is not how violent the King of Qin is, but why did the King of Qin do so many evil things and wait until I and Concubine Hu went to Xi'an to reveal them?"
"The emperor is far away, and the power of the princes in their fiefdoms is astonishingly great. Therefore, they can cover the sky with one hand and raise soldiers who are loyal to them."
After listening to this, the King of Han seemed to be thinking about something.
Ji Gang raised his second finger. "This second secret is even bloodier than the first. Your Highness, do you know that the Xiaoling Mausoleum once suffered a fire, and all the above-ground buildings were destroyed except for the underground palace?"
The King of Han nodded and said, "I have heard that Emperor Gaozu later rebuilt the Xiaoling Mausoleum and reinforced and raised the towers."
Ji Gang smiled, "In fact, the Xiaoling Mausoleum was not destroyed by natural disasters, but by man-made disasters. On the surface, Concubine Da Ding was the concubine that Emperor Gaozu snatched from Han Wang Chen Youliang. In fact, Concubine Da Ding committed adultery with Han Wang's son Chen Li. After she became pregnant, she deliberately seduced Emperor Gaozu and became his favorite concubine. The King of Qi should actually be named Chen. He is a bastard. At that time, the King of Qi had already gone to Qingzhou to be a vassal. He was also far away from home, so he secretly gathered the old forces of the King of Han and had private soldiers. He planned to kill the princes in the future, ascend the throne and become the emperor to avenge Chen Youliang."
"It was Consort Hu who exposed the matter. Emperor Gaozu poisoned Concubine Da Ding and ordered the Prince of Qi to return to the capital to take care of his mother, on the pretext that she was seriously ill. In order to save his mother, the Prince of Qi persuaded his brother, the Prince of Tan, and the two of them led the Prince of Qi's private soldiers to attack the Xiaoling Mausoleum, intending to hold the bodies of the Prince of Lu and Empress Xiaoci hostage, in order to force the Emperor to hand over Concubine Da Ding and let them flee."
It's unheard of!
The King of Han was shocked.
Ji Gang chuckled and said, "The emperor doesn't know the details of this matter. I only told your Highness. At that time, Duke Mu Chun of Qian happened to be in Xiaoling Mausoleum and successfully stopped the conspiracy of the King of Qi and the King of Xiang. The two princes saw that the situation was hopeless and they were surrounded by enemies, so they jumped off the city wall hand in hand. Before they died, they said, 'I would rather see the King of Hell than the King of Thieves', and they died on the spot with their heads broken."
After hearing this, the King of Han was silent for a long time, then sighed, "My fiefdom is the same as the King of Qi's, also in Qingzhou, Shandong. The Palace of the King of Han was also renovated from the Palace of the King of Qi. I didn't expect there was such a story behind it."
Ji Gang said: "Same place, different fate. His Royal Highness the King of Han is the legitimate son, while the King of Qi is just a bastard."
The King of Han said, "I understand what you mean. The King of Qin and the King of Qi are both far away from the emperor, so they can avoid the emperor's eyes and secretly expand their power. In this situation, I will retreat to advance. I will ask to be a vassal in Qingzhou and leave the capital. Then I will secretly recruit soldiers in Qingzhou and build an army that is absolutely loyal to me, waiting for the opportunity to accomplish great things."
Ji Gang nodded, "Your Highness must learn a lesson from the Tiance Guards this time. If they are not your own army, they will not be loyal to you. The emperor can take them away at will. The Tiance Guards are only loyal to the emperor and can betray you at any time. Also, your Highness should never forget that I am on your side. I have killed too many officials of the Eastern Palace and froze Li Jin to death. I am already a thorn in the eyes of the prince. If the prince ascends the throne, the first person he will settle accounts with will be me."
"After Your Highness is enfeoffed, the Emperor will definitely order me to send secret agents of the Imperial Guard to monitor Qingzhou. At that time, I will send my trusted confidants to turn a blind eye and select a few people to send irrelevant intelligence to the Emperor about oppression of the people and occupation of good farmland. Your Highness will just recruit soldiers and build weapons and firearms. The Emperor is already old, the Crown Prince is a cripple, and the Crown Prince has not even grown all his hair. At that time, I will cooperate with Your Highness to attack the Imperial City and support Your Highness to ascend the throne."
The King of Han was filled with excitement, but also had some concerns. "Is this... really feasible? Will it bring eternal infamy?"
Ji Gang said: "During the Xuanwu Gate Incident of the Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin, the Prince of Qin, who was also the second son, killed the crown prince and his younger brother, forced Emperor Gaozu of Tang to abdicate and become the Supreme Emperor, and ascended the throne as Emperor Taizong of Tang, who was a model of wise rulers for generations. As long as you are a good emperor and benefit the people, who cares how you got the throne? Those who steal a hook will be executed, and those who steal a country will become princes. Benevolence and righteousness exist in the gates of princes. Your Highness has become the emperor, and it is up to you to decide how the history books will write it."
Ji Gang pointed in the direction of the palace. "The emperor also claimed that he was the legitimate son of Empress Xiaoci. For this reason, he revised a series of historical books such as "The Records of Emperor Gaozu". At the beginning, some people opposed and ridiculed him. Now? Who dares to say no?"
The King of Han was moved and hammered the table, "I will write a letter tomorrow and ask to be a vassal of Qingzhou."
The author has something to say: Ji Gang’s mouth is a lie, and he just wants to make something big.
I will send 100 big red envelopes tonight to thank the little angels who cast their votes or irrigated me with nutrient solution~
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