Time passed silently.
Eunuch Wen had already cried a lot, guarding Empress Dowager Pei with swollen eyes.
"...Huyang said thank me, she said she would always wait for me..."
Empress Dowager Pei smiled and looked extremely kind. The premise is to ignore the weak, haggard and slightly swollen complexion.
"I also saw the late emperor. The late emperor stretched out his hand, saying that he came to pick me up."
"Ma'am..."
Eunuch Wen suppressed his crying.
Liu Zhao and Liu Yi's eyes were already red, and they remained silent.
Gu Jiu shook his head at Liu Zhao, time is running out.
Empress Dowager Pei said to Liu Zhao, "Let him leave the palace to retire."
The him here naturally refers to Eunuch Wen.
Liu Zhao said "Yes", afraid that the Empress Dowager Pei would be worried, and said, "I agree."
Eunuch Wen was taken aback for a moment, then he felt sad and knelt on the ground, "This old slave kowtows to the Queen Mother."
bang bang bang...
Three solid heads, their foreheads were already red and swollen.
He never expected that before the death of Empress Dowager Pei, she was still thinking about his safety.
He wept silently, and tears kept pouring out like a faucet that couldn't be turned off.
He kept wiping away his tears, and the two handkerchiefs were soon soaked.
Can only be replaced by sleeves.
Soon, the sleeves seemed to be fished out of the water.
Empress Dowager Pei smiled, "I have no regrets in this Palace, so don't make a mournful face."
Liu Zhao still asked, "Is it worth it? For Huyang, is it worth it?"
Empress Dowager Pei said with a smile: "One must have some ideas when one is alive."
"But… "
"I am willing!" Empress Dowager Pei interrupted Liu Zhao directly, "I am willing to give everything for her."
Liu Zhao said in a muffled voice, "Xiangguo Temple has decided to cremate the hopeless corpse."
"It doesn't matter!" Empress Dowager Pei didn't care.
Liu Zhao added: "Wangwang left his last words and wanted to set up a tomb as a layman. It's in Beimang Mountain."
When Empress Dowager Pei heard this, she was stunned at first, and then burst out laughing.
"It turns out that he is not really hard-hearted, it turns out that he also has a heart!"
"It is not allowed to set up a tomb for him. This is the last request of this palace. This palace will never allow him to be consummated."
Liu Zhao responded to this matter.
Empress Dowager Pei's eyes radiated a dazzling light. She stretched out her hand in the air and asked excitedly, "Are you here to pick me up? I'm coming soon!"
As soon as the words fell, Empress Dowager Pei swallowed her last breath, and slowly lowered her hands.
"Queen!"
"Queen!"
woo woo woo...
The entire Weiyang Palace was filled with suppressed crying.
When the Queen Mother passed away, the death knell rang in the palace, and the whole capital heard it.
Civil and military officials, relatives of the emperor and relatives of the state hung white lanterns at the door of their houses and put on plain clothes as soon as they heard the bell.
And to tell the children in the family, during the national mourning, be honest.
Don't forget that more than ten years ago, when Empress Dowager Xiao passed away, Emperor Chengzong Wende went on a killing spree, killing tens of thousands of people in one go.
Although there is a reason for this, no one can guarantee that Emperor Jingming Liu Zhao will take advantage of the Queen Mother's death to pick up the butcher's knife and clean the court.
All in all, if anyone commits a crime, he can let it go gently in normal times. During the national mourning period, it is possible to be attacked by someone under the pretext of overthrowing a family.
Shaofu moved quickly, Weiyang Palace was still encoffined, and the mourning hall of Liangyi Hall had already been half-decorated.
Liu Yi cried so much that he passed out, Gu Jiu sent someone to send Liu Yi back to the palace.
Liu Zhao stood in front of Empress Dowager Pei, his eyes hurt.
Gu Jiu forcibly pulled him away, "I'll come over to visit after I'm encoffined."
Liu Zhao's eyes were red, "Am I not filial? I dare not say that I am a filial son, nor dare I admit that I am not filial. Since childhood, her favorite word to scold is an unfilial son. I can hear cocoons in my ears, and I have long since stopped. I care about it. But she is gone, and I suddenly realized that I was really unfilial. These years, I have never done my filial piety in front of her."
Gu Jiu advised him: "What is filial piety? Obedience in everything is foolish filial piety. You are the emperor's grandson, the prince, and the emperor. You can't obey everything. Otherwise, there would be wars all over the world, and maybe this country has changed its name. .You don’t have to be too demanding. Nothing is perfect in this world, so you have to be more open.”
Liu Zhao looked up at the sky, "I'm tired!"
"I'll have someone send you back to Xingqing Palace."
Gu Jiu is very clear that what Liu Zhao needs now is a moment of quietness, not a long-winded persuasion.
So she didn't follow to Xingqing Palace.
Liu Zhao locked himself in the Xingqing Palace and did not allow anyone to disturb him.
One day and one night, without a grain of rice, I was thinking wildly in the dark.
The palace people were worried about accidents, so they frequently went to Chang'an Palace to ask Queen Gu Jiu to come forward to persuade them.
Gu Jiu said: "What His Majesty needs now is not persuasion."
He needs time alone and needs to figure things out by himself.
But if you don't eat or drink water for a long time, it will definitely not work.
Gu Jiu counted the time and came to Xingqing Palace.
With a crisp creak, the door of the main hall opened from the outside.
A ray of sunlight shines on the ground through the crack of the door, where the light is bright, dust is flying happily.
Gu Jiu carried a food box and walked into the hall.
Immediately afterwards, the door of the main hall was closed from the outside again.
It took a while for her to adapt to the light in the hall.
He was sitting on the steps with a beard and haggard face, as if he had lost his soul, and he didn't know where it was.
She stepped forward and wiped his cheeks with a damp towel.
"Wipe your sweat and feel better."
Liu Zhao's hand that was about to refuse had already been raised, but finally slowly lowered.
He wiped his cheeks, then his fingers.
Wipe ten fingers one by one, being extra careful.
After that, she opened the food box and took out a light and healthy meal, as well as a large bowl of vegetarian soup.
She told him, "The mourning hall has been set up, and the courtiers and wives have already entered the palace. The Ministry of Rites and the young mansion have to take care of the empress's funeral. Everything is in order, so you don't have to worry about it. I specially asked the small kitchen to make a bowl of vegetarian soup. A few green vegetable leaves, put a little bit of salt, and sprinkle a little green onion. You take a sip, if it tastes good, drink the rest."
She was standing in front of him with a soup bowl, seeing that he was not moving, she asked, "Drink?"
Liu Zhao hesitated for a moment, then reached out to take the soup bowl.
After not drinking water for a long time, a bowl of vegetable soup at this moment is like a high-quality delicacy, which makes people addicted.
Liu Zhao did not embarrass himself, nor was he hypocritical.
After drinking all the vegetarian soup in one go, my stomach is almost full.
Gu Jiu sat down beside him and didn't force him to eat.
She held his hand, "Don't blame yourself!"
"How do you know I'm blaming myself?"
"Many years of husband and wife, how could I not know."
"Aren't I really a jerk? Not filial or fraternal?"
"Is this how you see yourself?" Gu Jiu asked back.
Liu Zhao's face was gloomy, "I'm not a good person."
Gu Jiu said solemnly: "There are no purely good people and no purely bad people in the world. Most people in the world are somewhere in between. But you, as the emperor, of course you are neither a good person nor a bad person. A good person If you can't be an emperor, a pure villain can't be an emperor either."
"I am not filial."
Gu Jiu nodded, "According to secular standards, you are indeed unfilial, but you are not an unfilial son. You are an emperor, the way of filial piety must give way to the way of overlord."
"I deeply feel that I owe her too much."
"What is a debt? You don't owe anyone, you just got stuck because of the death of your mother."
"No, I do owe her something."
Gu Jiu frowned, and waited for him to finish, but it took a long time.
She increased her strength and held his hand tightly, "Birth, old age, sickness and death are natural laws, and no one can stop them. One day, we will also lie in bed and say goodbye to our children."
Liu Zhao held her hand backhand with great strength, "Zhen will walk in front of you."
"You walk in front of me, does that mean you want me to be the queen mother?"
"Don't you want to?"
"Being the queen mother sounds very beautiful, but it's so boring. Lonely, lonely..."
Liu Zhao hugged her suddenly, "I can't bear to let you go ahead."
Gu Jiu patted him on the shoulder, "Don't worry, I'm definitely walking behind you. Generally, women live longer than men."
The atmosphere was so moving and full of emotions, but Gu Jiu seriously analyzed who lived longer, women or men. The good atmosphere was like a bubble being popped, so uncomfortable.
Liu Zhao was dissatisfied and stared at her.
Gu Jiu raised her hand and poked him on the forehead, "Don't think too much. When that day comes, no matter who walks in front, the living must live well."
"I hate to leave you alone."
"It's true! If I become a queen mother, I will definitely not be able to remarry. If you are a widower, you can expand the harem and make another queen."
"Nonsense! You are deliberately angry with me. If you are mad at me, you can remarry. You are dreaming!"
Gu Jiu pursed her lips and smiled, pinched his earlobe, "Are you feeling better?"
"I'm almost mad at you, what can I do?"
Liu Zhao was full of energy and seemed to have regained his energy.
Gu Jiu was all smiles, no words of consolation were of use when dealing with Liu Zhao.
The only way is to stimulate him and arouse his fighting spirit.
Liu Zhao yelled a few words and suddenly felt hungry.
No matter whether the food is cold or not, just pick up the chopsticks and start eating.
"Too vegetarian! The portion is not enough, you can't even eat enough. Are you abusing me?"
"During the filial piety period, of course you can only eat vegetarian food. As for the portion, if you are not full, I will send someone to bring in a food box."
"Hurry up and bring some oil."
"Know!"
Liu Zhao had a good appetite, and he ate until he was 70% full in one sitting.
He still wants to eat.
Gu Jiu took away the chopsticks and forbade him to eat.
"You have been hungry for a day, how can you overeat. You are not young, you should also know how to maintain your health."
Liu Zhao secretly complained a few words, that's all, seven percent full is seventy percent full.
He regained his spirits and began to show up to deal with government affairs and funerals.
Up and down the Xingqing Palace, up and down the court hall, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
If the emperor is fine, the Great Zhou and the country must be fine.