In the first year of Yanxi, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, at the moment of Hai Shi.
The autumn insects are thick, and the dark clouds cover the moon.
The birth of the first-born prince was originally a great joy, but there was no trace of joy up and down the Kunning Palace.
The palace gate was closed, the eunuch and the maids were silent, and the surroundings were silent, like the eve of a storm.
A normal person in the Taiyuan Hospital was kneeling on the edge of the couch, his fingers trembling slightly, and large drops of sweat fell from his temples.
The apprehension in this room was all due to the woman on the couch—the Queen of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Su Ling.
Across the layers of mandarin yarn, Chang Aifu said with a trembling voice, "Bring me another bowl of soup and medicine."
The palace maid hurriedly said, "Yes."
The concoction passed through her throat, but Su Ling's breathing became weaker and weaker. Her pupils gradually slackened, and she subconsciously murmured, "Father, brother."
As soon as the voice fell, the expressions of everyone changed suddenly.
Everyone knows that Empress Su is of high birth, her father is Su Jingbei, Duke of Zhenguo, and her elder brother is Su Huaian, Shaoqing of Dali Temple. Her status is unmatched in this harem.
But now, the two backers of Empress Su are already the two people who cannot be mentioned the most in the Zhou Dynasty.
A lot of things have to start from half a year ago-
Less than three months after the new emperor ascended the throne, the Qi army invaded the border of Sizhou, and the attack was unprecedented. General Su led his troops on an expedition, and 60,000 elite soldiers left.
However, a month ago, the Governor of Langzhou, Kuaima newspaper, said that on Saturday, ten thousand soldiers were trapped in the Mihe River, and when the enemy was attacked by the enemy, Su Jingbei actually entered the enemy camp, and there was no trace after that.
The Su family's military exploits were outstanding, and they also had the merits of following the dragon. There was no death certificate, and no one dared to act rashly.
But then, someone found out the evidence of the Su family's collaborating with the enemy and treason - there was a secret passage that had been built for ten years in the Duke Zhen Guo's mansion.
Following the clues, the Ministry of Punishment and Jin Yiwei seized several brothels, restaurants, and teahouses in the capital overnight, arresting more than 100 people, many of which were related to the Su family.
All of the above are death certificates.
The Great General of Zhenguo cooperated with the enemy and betrayed the country. There was an uproar in the whole court. The old lady learned that her children and grandchildren were killed in the battlefield.
For a time, the entire capital was full of resentment.
For the hearts of the common people, Xiao Yuyu, the Emperor of Shaoxi, went on a personal expedition.
Whether the century-old foundation of Dazhou can be continued is still unknown.
How much medicine was poured in, how much Su Ling vomited out, the sweat on Chang Aifu's forehead was ticking as if it was more leaking, he slowly turned around, and after thinking it over and over again, said: "Qiqi Empress Dowager, the Queen's concubine has been thinking too much recently. Excessive damage to the body leads to premature birth. After two days of tossing and turning, right now, maybe I can't hold it anymore..."
Just when everyone was silent, the palace maid Fuying raised her head suddenly and said to the queen mother, "This servant has something to report to the queen mother."
The Empress Dowager sat on the armchair with the brown bamboo inlaid with jade, fiddling with the Buddha beads for a while, and said lightly, "You say it."
Fuying took a deep breath, glanced at the female official Xu Shangyi, and said, "Just now, the servant saw that Xu Shangyi had a bloody veil hidden in her sleeve, and she was acting suspiciously."
The identified Xu Shangyi suddenly said angrily: "What nonsense are you talking about? Who ordered you to pour dirty water on me?"
The queen mother tucked her clothes and said with a serious expression: "You mean, there is something wrong with the handkerchief in Xu Shangyi's hand?"
"The slaves are just guessing that the blood veil in Xu Shangyi's hands is not from Kunning Palace." Fuying said, "The slaves also asked the Empress Dowager to investigate! Please ask the Empress Dowager to be the master."
Su Ling didn't have the strength to speak anymore, she glanced at Fuying from the corner of her eye.
Fool.
What is the difference between saying such a thing and giving your life in vain
There are too many people in this world who want her life, and no one can be her master.
After all, collaborating with the enemy and treason is a sin, being in a high position is a sin, and giving birth to a son-in-law is even more of a sin.
Xu Shangyi knelt down with a "pop" and said loudly: "The Empress Dowager Mingjian, the slaves have never hidden any blood veils."
"Come here." The Queen Mother looked at Xu Shangyi and said, "Take it down for severe torture, and if there is anything suspicious, send it directly to the Sili Jian."
"The slave is wronged!"
The two eunuchs dragged Xu Shangyi away directly,
The dull sound of thunder pierced the air, the wind roared, the lanterns under the eaves swayed back and forth in the bitter wind and rain, and the rain poured down.
I don't know how long it took, there was intermittent crying in the hall.
Su Ling slowly closed her eyes, memories flooded in—
Yongchang thirty-six years, spring.
That year, she was seventeen years old, waiting to be in her boudoir.
I thought I could marry a man of the right family, who was willing to love her and love her, but didn't want an imperial decree to make her the concubine of the King of Jin. King Xiao Yu of Jin was unwilling to be an emperor, his biological mother died early, and he was not a direct descendant. Although he grew up beside the empress, he still had little chance of winning the battle for the throne.
This imperial decree is clearly to pull the Zhenguo Gongfu into the fire pit.
At that time, she felt that the sky was about to fall.
The daughter of the general door, and when she is young, there will always be a lot of courage from nowhere.
After learning about Xiao Yu's whereabouts, she dressed up as a dandy boy, wearing a long white robe, swinging a fan, and walked into the Qingfeng Building, which was full of fish and dragons in the capital.
She turned over her cuffs and handed shopkeeper Yu a large sum of money.
Shopkeeper Yu led her up to the second floor with a smile, turned left, and she sat down in the box on the west side. Qingfeng Building is a place for watching operas and listening to music.
She leaned back against the screen, held her breath, and began to eavesdrop on the sounds coming from next door.
The emperor's body is not as strong as before, and the battle for the crown prince is close at hand. At this moment, Su Ling guessed that these people who are talking loudly should be the staff of the Jin palace.
Sure enough, she heard her name.
Su family daughter.
Downstairs, the sound of silk and bamboo gradually weakened, and someone poured Xiao Yu a glass of wine, "Your Highness is marrying the Duke of Zhenguo this time, and King Cheng and King Yan are afraid that they will be in a hurry."
Another person sighed: "It's good to be able to win over Duke Zhen, but the Su family girl has a bad reputation, and it's not clear to be involved with He Zichen. This is also a troublesome thing."
Now the family is prosperous, and the four families of Xue, He, Chu, and Mu are respected in Beijing. Everyone knows that He Zichen, the direct son of the He family, has been in love with the daughter of the Su family for a long time, and he knows that he is surrounded by the government of the town all day long.
However, the troublesome things in the mouths of officials and dignitaries could not be as simple as their children's private affairs.
He's family, that's the hard-hitting Yan Wang faction.
Su Ling's heart was pounding, and she turned around to see through the screen—
Qingfeng Building was full of feasting and feasting, and the shadows behind the screen were full of shadows. She saw Xiao Yu at a glance.
The man's profile was sharp, his eyes were half-drooping, he was playing with a small bottle, shook it, and suddenly smiled coldly, "What about the trouble? Su Jingbei doesn't have any other daughters."
His voice was very deep, and his every word was like a Buddha bead falling on a jade plate, hitting her heart.
Su Ling's heart fell like lead.
The seventeen-year-old girl stared at the folding fan in her hand for a long time.
How about a noble girl, hasn't she become a sharp arrow for others to seize power
She is 110,000 who don't want to marry him.
Of course, the emperor's order cannot be violated. No matter how unwilling she is, she can only put on a wedding dress and marry Xiao Yu, who is known by her father as a man of literacy, martial arts, and bravery.
On the day of their marriage, she cried and blushed early in the morning.
While she was crying, Su Huaian wiped her, tears mixed with snot, Su Shaoqing rubbed all over her hands.
As the eldest brother, Su Huai'an wanted to carry her out of the Duke's Mansion. He laughed, sighed, and sighed again, "A Ling, don't cry, will it work?"
She couldn't help but look back before getting on the sedan.
I still remember that the jade-like young man looked at her, his lips pursed tightly, and his eyes turned red in an instant.
He said softly, "A Ling, the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion will always be your home."
She thought it would never end.
In fact, after marrying Xiao Yu, apart from the initial tit-for-tat, life was not as bad as she thought.
Although she always reminded herself that behind the words "courageous and good at fighting", it is not romantic, but piles of bones, but how do you say it
Getting along day after day, intimacy night after night, finally let her off her guard.
The candlelight flickered that day, and his eyes were deep and clear, like mountain spring water, clearly reflecting her flushed body.
He leaned into her ear and said, "A Ling, I know what you blame me for. When you blame me for marrying you, it was all calculated, and you blame me for ruining your marriage."
"Then I'll pay you, how?"
At that time, when I was young, the beginning of love was like a spark that ignited a prairie fire, and it ignited at the touch of a button.
She was moved, and she took it seriously.
Times have changed, and even at this moment, she still admits that Xiao Yuta fascinated her that year.
He taught her to shoot arrows and ride horses, teach her to be merry, and teach her how to be his wife.
She loves his heroic appearance when he stretches out his arms and draws his bow, roars her name in a low voice when he is deeply in love, and loves the words he said when he was ordered to leave Beijing to investigate the case, Ah Ling, come with me.
His brows and eyes don't often smile, and when he smiles, he is more than handsome.
She had thought that she would live with him like this forever.
Until the third day of October in the thirty-eighth year of Yongchang, Emperor Jiaxuan died suddenly, and he sat on the dragon chair.
When the old and the new are changing, there is chaos in Beijing.
In terms of political achievements, the late emperor reigned for thirty-eight years, and it would be an exaggeration to say that he was ignorant. The court has been fighting for years, but he is busy building a palace, favoring officials, and delegating power in the harem to foreign relatives. .
Even the money for the relief of the victims of the severe drought in Henan has been cobbled together.
The country of this big week has long been riddled with holes, and it is difficult to return.
Xiao Yu was busy with the government day and night, and she often did not see his people.
But it didn't take long for her to be diagnosed with two months of pregnancy. The courtiers were busy congratulating them, but they rushed to persuade the new emperor to accept the harem, so as to spread the branches.
As a result, Xue Lanyi, the sister of Xue Xiangyang, the minister of punishment, Liu Guyang, the daughter of Liu Wenshi, the first assistant to the cabinet, and Li Yuan, the princess of the Li family of Korea, entered the palace one after another.
In fact, she knew in her heart that as long as he became the emperor, there would be such a day.
Time passed, and my thoughts returned to a month ago, that is, when the incident happened in the township.
The evidence of the Su family collaborating with the enemy and treason is solid, and she has nothing to say. But even with the knife on her neck, she didn't believe that Su Huaian had anything to do with it.
Otherwise, why would Su Huaian stay in Beijing if the secret passage is there
She knelt outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation and waited for him. At the end, Eunuch Sheng helped her up.
"The madam is pregnant with a dragon heir, what are you doing?" Eunuch Sheng sighed and said, "How the maiden treats the old slave on weekdays, the old servant will keep it in mind. Today, I will dare to persuade the maiden."
"Niangniang is the emperor's first wife, and her affection is naturally deep, but no matter how deep the friendship is, it can't stand the toss. If Niangniang came for the Su family's business, then you might as well think about this crime of treason, who is betraying the country? Country? This love, do you really want it?"
"Empress doesn't think about herself, doesn't she think about the child in her womb?"
child.
Xiao Yun, she called him Yun'er for nine months...
She really shouldn't let him grow up in this huge harem.
Maybe, maybe.
In my whole life, when the grass and trees fall in autumn, there are many regrets.
Su Ling felt that her body gradually became lighter, as if it turned into a puff of smoke, getting higher and higher, and she didn't know where it was going.
At this moment, the little prince on the couch suddenly started to cry as if he had sensed something.
The baby's voice is very thin, but it is louder than it is, and it seems to be able to tear people's hearts.
The moon set and the stars sank, the bells rang—
In the first year of Yanxi, on August 15th, Queen Chunyi died.