Shen Wen chuckled, climbed out of the window and went into the room. Carefully slipped out of his courtyard through the shadows. She doesn't want to be caught, how can she give up the disguise she has worked so hard to maintain? Not to mention that there are too many miscellaneous people in the mansion, the old lady and Mrs. Yang are both people who are not easy to fake, and it is easy to reveal their secrets in their daily behavior.
Shen Wen guessed that if his father had something to say, it should be at the old lady's place, so he went carefully to the small courtyard where the old lady lived behind the Hou's mansion.
When approaching the backyard, Shen Wen found that there were sergeants walking around, and now she was happy instead. If the place where they were talking secretly was Yang's main house, she might not be able to get close to it, but if it was really where the old lady lived, she had her own secret passage: a dog hole that was filled in.
Shen Wen knew that the old lady had raised a dog a long time ago, but after Mrs. Yang gave birth to a child, the old lady was afraid that the dog would startle the child, so she sent the dog to Zhuangzi. The dog hole in the courtyard where the old lady lived was originally blocked, because the old lady always thought that the dog would be taken back when the child was older. Unexpectedly, Yang Shi gave birth one after another, and the dog died of old age and never came back. The dog hole on the blank block is too small for an adult to get through, so it has not been carefully filled.
Shen Wen chose a gap among the inspecting sergeants, approached the courtyard wall, and reached the dog hole filled with bricks, stones and weeds, gently took out a few stones, and a hole appeared in the shadow. Fortunately, she is still an eight-year-old child. Although she is a little fat, she has practiced light kung fu for many years, and her body is soft. She held her breath and slipped through.
She turned around and covered the opening of the hole with weeds to prevent the light from showing through. There was no one in the small courtyard, so it could be seen that what Zhenbeihou said did not want the sergeants to hear.
Shen Wen knew that the Marquis of Zhenbei practiced hard kung fu, but he also had sharp eyes and ears, so he was extra careful, and approached the old lady's main room gently in the shadows like a cat.
As soon as he reached a place where he could hear them talking, Shen Wen stopped, slowed his breathing, and closed his eyes to listen to the conversation in the room.
The voice of the Marquis of Zhenbei: "...the auspicious beast gave birth to a freak, and the prince said that it was a warning sign from the sky, indicating that someone had evil intentions, and had the heart of a traitor. The emperor said that if someone really harbors evil intentions, then the future generations will They will be infamous, and they will suffer forever in the 18th floor of hell when they die." Zhenbei Hou sighed and said: "After the emperor finished speaking, he stared at me for a long time, and all the courtiers also looked at me. I told the emperor that my Shen family was loyal to the emperor and served the country, and I was proud to die for the country and the people on the battlefield. The emperor smiled and said, "I know that the Marquis of Zhenbei should not be a minister with two hearts." There is a lot of contempt in the words. "
The old lady gave a "bah" and said, "It's because old Hou Ye said..." She sighed deeply.
The room was quiet for a while, and Yang choked up and asked, "Master Hou, what should we do?"
The Marquis of Zhenbei sighed again, and said slowly: "As I said in the hall, my Shen family can fight to the death for the country and the people. No matter what the emperor thinks or what the crown prince thinks, they can't change the heart of my Shen family. .”
Yang stammered a bit and said: "But, if the emperor..."
Zhenbei Hou said: "So what? No matter what the emperor does, he can't kill me. Since ancient times, Bei Rong has never died of his heart to offend me. Now that Tugu Khan is tough by nature and has the ambition to dominate. Now It's just because he and his brothers and uncles are fighting for the overlordship of northern Xinjiang, and they have no time to look south. They just test every year. If the emperor gets rid of me and someone else comes to lead the army, even if the Shen family's army takes care of the overall situation and obeys the new commander, it will definitely be given to the north. It is an opportunity for Rong to take advantage of. Now I can only guard the northern border, not allowing Beirong to cross the border, and protect the people of our dynasty from the disaster of war. If there is a day, I will not be exhausted..." He stopped.
The old lady said slowly: "My son is right, there really will be a day, just to see the old Hou Ye. My Shen family has not owed the king's kindness to the people, so there is no need to be afraid wherever you go."
Yang cried in a low voice: "I would like to go with my husband..."
Zhenbeihou said: "At that time, if there are descendants of my Shen family, you must take good care of them, and don't be confused."
Young just cried. The old lady sighed and said, "Why are you crying? It's not doing much right now. The two hundred thousand Shen family army is the strongest army in our dynasty. If the emperor doesn't want to dig his own grave, he shouldn't do stupid things."
Zhenbei Hou said again: "In the capital, let the children have as little contact with the royal family as possible."
Yang asked hesitantly: "Third prince, is it... possible?"
Zhenbei Hou immediately said: "The crown prince is the eldest son, and he has never done anything wrong in recent years. If the direction of the ministers is changed, the court will be chaotic. This canonization ceremony is very grand, and the emperor seems to be very sure of this prince."
Yang sighed: "I think the third prince is quite a cheerful person..."
Zhenbeihou interrupted: "This matter must never be brought up again. I know that Dalang has had a close relationship with the third prince. After marrying him next year, as soon as he has a child, let him go to the border with me. Erlang is the same, Leave the capital as soon as possible after getting married, and give less evidence."
Probably reluctant to leave her two sons, Yang responded with sobs, completely lacking in her usual roughness.
Shen Wen felt deeply angry.
She originally thought that the Hou Mansion had stepped into the prince's trap without knowing it, but now she realized that the Zhenbei Hou might have known that the emperor and the prince had the intention to exclude others from him, but he couldn't take any action. Because if there is any change in Zhenbei Hou, it will not only cause instability in northern Xinjiang, war and chaos, and the common people, but also be permanently nailed to the pillar of shame in history, and will be criticized by future generations. In this age of honor, such disgrace is worse than death.
Zhenbeihou can only continue to guard the northern border for the people and those who want to put him to death, waiting for the day when the butcher knife falls, he cannot avoid it, cannot fight back, and welcomes death with his eyes open. Perhaps "begging for mercy and submitting" would save his life, but Zhenbei Hou never thought about it, and neither did the old lady and Yang's suggestion.
Shen Wen slowly retreated to the courtyard wall, climbed out of the hole, filled the hole with stones and weeds, passed through the patrol of the sergeant, but did not return to the courtyard, and went straight to the outside of the courtyard.
She had accumulated too strong emotions in her heart, and she had to vent it, so she ran all the way to the First Prince's Mansion.
After her death in her previous life, she once hated the prince very much, thinking that the prince tabooed Zhenbeihou from having close relations with the third prince, and she was worried, so she wanted to kill several birds with one stone to get rid of the hidden dangers she didn't like. Now she can see clearly, long before the final trump card, the emperor had tacitly allowed the prince's malice. Perhaps, this was the emperor's selfishness. He used the so-called "loyalty to the emperor" and "the heart of a second minister" to tightly restrain Zhenbeihou, but he did not check his and his son's behavior. This kind of hypocrisy of double standards completely demonstrated the imperial power. vicious.
It is only now that Shen Wen understands the strong criticism of the thousand-year-old emperor system by those people in later generations, and understands the realistic meaning of what later generations said, "Despicableness is the passport of the humble, and nobleness is the epitaph of the noble."
Zhenbeihou's loyalty is his death sentence, and the prince's sinisterness is the reason for his victory.
Shen Wen jumped over the high wall from the shadows and entered the First Prince's Mansion.
The First Prince's Mansion was full of joyful noises.
After the canonization of the crown prince, he officially entered the East Palace. Starting to move tomorrow, there will be a big banquet in the mansion tonight, and there will be a constant flow of people coming and going. Shen Wen went with ease to the small courtyard where the prince had a secret conversation with his aides where she had visited last time. Today, the place is brightly lit.
In the shadows, Shen Wen looked at the door leading to the small courtyard, thinking whether he should set a fire and burn it to relieve his anger. But she learned in the millennium that after death, people will experience everything they gave to others in life, which made her calm down slowly.
Seeing that the time was almost up, Shen Wen was just about to leave when a group of people from a distance surrounded the prince and came over. The crown prince was obviously drunk, and said with a smile: "... Father is Gao Ming... You didn't see Zhenbei Hou's face... It's so funny..."
Everyone echoed, and someone said: "Your Highness, let's talk in the room."
Shen Wen finally couldn't hold it back, closed his eyes and flicked the Yangling point on the prince's right leg in his consciousness, one leg of the prince softened, and he knelt down on the ground, just as the person next to him was about to help, Shen Wen touched the other side of the prince again Weizhong point on the knee.
The prince first felt a sudden numbness in one knee, and the center of gravity naturally shifted to the other side. Then he felt a soreness in the back of that knee, and the numbness spread to his calf. Even if someone pulled him, he still fell heavily on the ground. Kneeling down, there was a "stab" on the sleeve, and a hole was torn at the seam.
Everyone was startled at first, but then laughed and said: "Your Highness is drunk!" Helping the prince up hurriedly, one said: "Let's go to rest!"
The prince yelled anxiously: "No! Go... go to the study! Otherwise I... won't be able to sleep..."
Several people helped him into the yard.
Shen Wenyao watched the prince kneel down, and said to himself, this is a sobering up for you. From now on, if you do more and make more mistakes, you will be punished for your crimes! Your conformity and patronage will be removed with you, even your father, who is revered as the emperor, will not be spared. You must continue this journey of perdition that has already begun, and don't let me down.
Thinking of this, Shen Wen let out a long breath before turning around and running to the high wall again. Just as he was on the wall, a figure who had been leaning on the wall earlier whispered, "You... you are here! You... wait..."
As soon as Shen Wen's body stopped, she heard the voice slightly familiar, so she didn't dare to speak, jumped off the wall and ran away without looking back, and the person on the wall let out a dissatisfied "hey".
When they almost ran to the Hou's mansion, Shen Wen faintly felt that the voice was a bit like Zhang Yunming's. This person is obviously waiting for her there, but the other person is definitely not from the prince, he is probably a very curious guy. Shen Wen knew that the other party would never be able to catch up with her, and the other party would not know who she was. She didn't want to hurt the other party, so she had to ignore him again and again, otherwise it would be easier to expose herself if she turned around and pursued the other party.
It has become his habit for the crown prince to sit in the study drunkenly. If he doesn't sit here every day, chat with his staff, and talk about miscellaneous matters, he will feel that the day is unreliable. No matter how important the day was, whether it was a wedding or a canonization ceremony, in the end, he still had to go to the study and have a few conversations with these confidantes.
The prince just fell to the ground, and he felt very unlucky: Kneeling on the ground is a surrender, which symbolizes the loss of the master's position; the sleeve is torn at the shoulder, which symbolizes the loss of wings. Coupled with the severe pain in his knee, he suddenly became depressed, and the smile just now turned into gloom.
Seeing the Prince's displeasure, one of the staff hurriedly said: "Your Highness is worried about that fall just now? Your Highness, don't worry, before the roc spreads its wings, it has to squat down for a while before it can go straight to the sky. Your highness is a big roc, so naturally you have to restrain yourself first." Hou Yang, there will be great achievements in the future. The sleeves are torn off, which means that the old is gone and the new is coming, which means that His Highness must be recruiting a lot of staff and subordinates to help him."
Only then did the prince frowned, nodded and said: "It makes sense." Then he asked: "Recently, what happened to the Zhenbeihou's residence? That..." He snorted disdainfully.
One person replied: "Our people have been bought into the mansion by the Marquis of Zhenbei. It was the second young lady who wanted her, just like Su Wanniang. As soon as she heard about the bleak life experience, she softened her heart and accepted her. It can be seen that Su Wanniang That time was definitely a coincidence. Our people said that the second young lady was rejected by her brothers and sisters in the mansion, and when they blamed her for being ignorant, she knew how to cry. In the yard, she listened to Su Wanniang for everything, and her own wet nurse was in Su Wanniang's house. Under the control of her, she was a complete idiot for raising her for nothing."
The prince sneered, and the staff went on to say: "Zhenbeihou is still the same as before. He kept his mouth shut and asked the children to practice martial arts and study hard. He didn't contact the military officer in Beijing. He refused to see people who went to him. His wife These days I started to pack my bags and never walked around with relatives from other families.”
The prince nodded: "The more honest he is, the less trouble he will have."
Everyone agreed, although they were not sure what trouble the crown prince could cause Zhenbei Hou.
The next day after the ceremony, the old Taoist sat cross-legged on a tree stump in the woods. He raised his hands and counted repeatedly, not far away, a little boy with a plump hair was running back and forth in the forest. The old Taoist frowned unhappily at the child: "It was because of your fever that I couldn't go to see the sky last night. Now that I figured it out, I still can't believe it."
The child didn't hear it at all and continued playing by himself. The old Taoist sighed: "I thought you were a psychic at the beginning, but you know the past and the present. I haven't noticed it since I adopted you!"
The child ran over and said with a smile, "Master, look, this beetle!"
The old Taoist looked into the child's eyes intently: "Did you feel anything? The new crown prince's dragon spirit is weak, his life is vague, and the fate of the country is chaotic? There is a force against the sky looming..."
The child was surprised: "This beetle has so many uses?"
The old man waved his hand: "Go and play! Let me do the math..."
On the same morning, the sky in the capital was also clear and cloudless. The third prince entered Chen Guifei's palace gate. Chen Guifei smiled softly as always, and spoke softly and slowly: "The emperor is here? How are you doing recently?"
The third prince stepped forward a few steps, and after saluting, he said to Concubine Chen Gui, "The sun is good today. My child will accompany mother to the garden?"
Concubine Chen Gui smiled and nodded, the third prince immediately helped Concubine Chen by one arm, and helped Concubine Chen slowly walk out of the gate. He led Concubine Chen to walk among the fallen flowers after autumn, staying away from those palace officials and eunuchs, and then asked in a low voice with a smile on his face and anxiety: "Mother Concubine, what did you call me last time?" Look, you said let me go back first, you have to think about it, what do you have in mind? What are you going to do?"
Looking at the withering branches, Concubine Chen sighed slightly, and said softly, "Actually, it doesn't matter if I go, I'm really bored..." The faint smile on her face remained unchanged, but her voice seemed tired and cold.
The third prince was startled, and stopped to look at Concubine Chen. In his eyes, his mother's delicate face always had a smile as warm as a spring breeze, and her words were often filled with warmth and enthusiasm. But now, Concubine Chen's eyes seemed to have no The lifeless woman who is not yet thirty years old looks like a woman in her forties or fifties.
Concubine Chen Gui still looked into the distance, and said dreamily: "Seventeen years, every day, endless... I'm so tired..."
The third prince suddenly wanted to cry, as if he was still a five or six-year-old child, he took Chen Guifei's arm with both hands and said, "Mother! What are you talking about?! What happened to you, what will my sister and I do?! "He usually called Chen Guifei "Mother Concubine", but now he was in a hurry and called "Niangqin" like a child.
Chen Guifei slowly closed her eyes, then opened them again, and it was the woman with a warm smile, she raised her hand and patted the back of the third prince's hand, nodded and said: "Yes, I still have you and your sister, Naturally, you can't leave, at least, you can't leave without making arrangements for you."
The third prince always felt that something was wrong, but he didn't know how to persuade him. A palace man over there approached, and the third prince had to forcefully ask with a smile: "What does my concubine like? My son often goes outside recently. bring back."
Concubine Chen Guifei smiled and said in a low voice: "When I was young, I always wanted to go to the mountains and play in the water. In the spring, I saw the peach blossoms that people said were blooming. In the summer, I went boating on the Qianqing Lake. Xiao, make tea in Dongxue Pavilion or something. I’ve grown up so much, I haven’t done it yet..."
The third prince really had tears in his eyes, and said with a choked voice: "Mother, if the child has a fief in the future, please ask the father to let the child bring the mother out of here, so that the mother can go to the fief to have fun. "
Concubine Chen Gui nodded with a smile, and said softly: "Okay, my mother will wait for you to make arrangements for me."
The third prince bid farewell to Concubine Chen Gui and came out, feeling heavy in his heart. In the end, Concubine Chen Guifei did not tell him how she would prevent others from poisoning her. Perhaps Concubine Chen Gui didn't know how to defend herself? Or can't prevent it? Thinking of this, the third prince broke out in a cold sweat, wishing he could go to his father to ask for a fief right away. But he is fifteen years old this year, and his elder brother was only conferred the crown prince when he was eighteen, and he will not be conferred the crown prince until he is at least eighteen. Can Concubine Chen Gui wait these three years
The third prince felt uncomfortable, and wanted to fight with Shen Yi and the others. But the Marquis of Zhenbei hadn't left the capital yet, and he also knew that he couldn't go to the Marquis of Zhenbei's mansion now, so he just went back to his palace in a dull mood. I wanted to find Eunuch Gu to practice, but Eunuch Gu was not there, so I went to the empty field behind the hall and kicked several punches repeatedly until I was sweating profusely.
Eunuch Gu is with the emperor.
The day after the third prince received the note in Wanhualou, he told the emperor about it. But after such a long time, the crown prince's canonization ceremony has passed, and the emperor has not given any instructions on this matter. He was suddenly called here today, Eunuch Gu thought that the emperor was going to tell him how to protect Concubine Chen Gui.
The emperor said to Eunuch Gu: "It's been a long time since you left me, it's time to come back."
Eunuch Gu was startled, but he already lowered his body and said: "Just follow your Majesty's order, the servants will move here today." The emperor is about to give up Concubine Chen Gui.
The emperor smiled: "You are loyal. There is no need to be in such a hurry. You know in your heart that you should come back at the end of the year. You don't need to make this known to everyone."
Eunuch Gu lowered his body again: "Everyone listens to His Majesty."
The emperor sighed: "Concubine Chen is indeed considerate, but I can be considered worthy of her."
He made a gesture, and Eunuch Gu bowed and left.
Eunuch Gu didn't ask any questions, because he thought he knew the emperor quite well: the emperor canonized the eldest prince as the prince, and he would become the person who would assist him in governing the country in the future. Some small things fulfilled the prince's wish, allowing the prince and himself to be of the same mind without creating a gap. After all, Concubine Chen Gui was an "old man" for more than ten years, and the emperor felt "worthy of her" even after her death for so many years. As for the third prince, the eldest prince has become a crown prince and is unbreakable. There is no need to trouble this younger brother. Even if Concubine Chen Gui is gone, this son will not be in any danger anymore, unlike before.
Zhenbei Hou set off to return to the north five days after the prince canonization ceremony.
Before dawn, the old lady and Mrs. Yang took five children to bid farewell to Marquis Zhenbei at the gate. Marquis Zhenbei was dressed in the light armor of a soldier, with a black cloak on his outside. There were twenty war horses waiting outside the gate of the mansion, and the sergeants were awe-inspiring.
The Marquis of Zhenbei bid farewell to the old lady first, the old lady held back her tears and said in a low voice, "Take care of my son."
Zhenbei Hou nodded and said: "Mother, don't worry about it." Then he said to Yang Shi, who was crying with tears streaming down his face, "I will come back when Dalang gets married next year, and I won't be leaving this time."
Yang saluted, crying and said: "How can it be considered not long? You have no conscience..." She has been losing her temper since yesterday, and she has to argue about everything.
Zhenbeihou looked at the children standing beside him, and said in a low voice helplessly: "In front of the children..."
Yang covered her face with her hands: "I don't care!" cried out loudly.
The old lady frowned and said in a low voice, "How old are you? Still so petty!"
Yang cried even harder. The older children were a little embarrassed to see their mother crying so hard. Only Shen Wen went over to pull Yang's sleeve and cried, "Mother, don't cry..."
Yang Shi is thirty-three years old this year. She is the mistress of the house. Everyone here thinks that she should be very mature and stable. In Shen Wen's previous life, she also thought that Yang was sometimes too excitable, but looking at it now, she felt that Yang was still a young woman. In later generations, at this age, women are still young, and it is time to get in harmony with her husband, but Yang But Shi wants to see off her husband who has only been together for half a month. How painstakingly she cleaned and prepared at the beginning, how painful it is now.
Marquis Zhenbei told some older children with tears in their eyes not to cause trouble, and picked up Shen Wen and shook his head. Yang put down his hands and cried, "Why are you hugging her?! Forgot... Aren't you tired?! Wen'er, come down quickly!"
After Shen Wen hit several acupuncture points on Zhenbeihou's shoulder with his consciousness, he twisted his body crying to get down. Zhenbei Hou said with a smile: "It's okay, Wen'er is not heavy at all, every time I hold Wen'er, I feel much more comfortable."
Yang cried, "Don't talk nonsense!"
The old lady coughed in dissatisfaction, and Yang raised her hands to cover her face and cried again. The old lady said to the children: "You all bid farewell to your father, don't miss the hour." This is urging Mrs. Yang.
Zhenbeihou saluted the old lady again, the old lady nodded, and the five sons and daughters saluted and bid farewell to Zhenbeihou. Then the old lady beckoned Shen Xiang and Shen Wen to come over and help her, then motioned to Shen Yi, Shen Jian and Shen Zhuo to follow him, and took the lead towards the mansion.
When turning a corner, Shen Wen looked back, and saw that the cloak of Marquis Zhenbei was blocking Yang's figure, and her parents were clinging to each other in the gray twilight of the morning.
Shen Wen burst into tears, at this moment she was very thankful that she had wandered for thousands of years and did not give up this life. If her persistence can bring these people's well-being in this world, she will have no regrets even if she has to wait thousands of years in solitude!