The matter of Concubine Jing was too loud, but in one day, everyone in the palace knew that Concubine Jing had been plotted twice in one day.
"You said... who did it?"
In a certain corner of the palace, a bunch of little palace maids and little eunuchs gathered together and secretly discussed the matter of Concubine Jing.
"Who else could it be? Just think about who in the entire palace does not want Concubine Jing to come back?"
"Could it be the wife of Renshou Palace—"
"Shh! Keep your voice down! Do you want to be caught and beheaded! Don't say the name of that person, it's rotten in your heart, and you're not allowed to say it in your dreams! Otherwise, you'll just wait for your head to be beheaded! The palace maid and eunuch who died in the hands of that person were not one thousand or several hundred!"
"So brutal?"
The new little palace maid shivered with fright.
In fact, not only the maids and eunuchs thought so, but even Concubine Zhuang Guifei, the niece of Empress Dowager Zhuang, believed that Concubine Jing was killed one after another by her own aunt.
"Your Majesty, the concubine heard that the concubine's concubine has been plotted again. Does your majesty have any doubts in mind?" In the study of Huaqing Palace, Empress Xiao looked at the emperor with a deep expression.
The meaning of her connotation is obvious, that is, Empress Dowager Zhuang did it.
However, unexpectedly, the emperor vetoed: "Don't guess, it's not the queen mother."
Empress Xiao looked at the emperor blankly as if struck by lightning.
What did your majesty say
Didn't the queen do it
Since when did His Majesty open his mouth to excuse the Queen Mother
He wished that every thunder in the sky would be counted on Empress Zhuang's head!
"Your Majesty..." Queen Xiao said.
The emperor interrupted her: "Okay, don't ask about the matter of Concubine Jing, I have my own opinion. You go back and restrain the palace people, so that they don't talk about it."
Empress Xiao responded incredulously: "...Yes."
Concubine Zhuang went to Renshou Palace with a smile, and walked into Empress Dowager Zhuang's study. As she walked, she said with a smile, "Aunt! You are so amazing! How did you do it? You taught Concubine Jing that vixen again, but she didn't. Let go of the handle! I heard that Your Majesty has no doubts about you at all! There are a few little eunuchs in Kunning Palace who are talking nonsense, but the aunt guesses what
Halfway through speaking, Concubine Zhuang saw Empress Dowager Zhuang's icy, knife-like gaze, and she was agitated, "Auntie, Auntie!"
"Is your mouth very busy?" Empress Dowager Zhuang said without anger.
Concubine Zhuang was overwhelmed by her aunt's powerful aura. She didn't dare to look directly at Empress Dowager Zhuang, so she hurriedly lowered her head and bowed: "Greet my aunt."
Empress Dowager Zhuang said angrily: "Ai's family is very busy, don't disturb Ai's family if you have nothing to do!"
"Yes!" Concubine Zhuang Gui angrily withdrew.
As soon as she left on the front foot, Eunuch Qin walked in with the tea on the back foot.
Empress Dowager Zhuang looked at the book in her hand and asked indifferently, "Did you deliver the person?"
"Deliver it, the carriage under the gate of Bishui Hutong." Eunuch Qin said with a smile.
"Well." Empress Dowager Zhuang replied lightly and continued to read the book.
Eunuch Qin walked over and put the tea on the table, unable to hide his smile.
"What are you laughing at?" Empress Dowager Zhuang looked at him strangely.
Qin Gong said: "The slave is happy for the queen mother!"
Empress Dowager Zhuang snorted: "What's so happy about it? Two little things that don't know the heights of the sky, the skin is endless!"
Gu Jiao fled into the Renshou Palace wearing the clothes of a little eunuch as if she was reincarnated. How could Empress Dowager Zhuang not know what the truth was about
"The servant's tone of voice is very careful." Empress Dowager Zhuang ordered.
Eunuch Qin said: "Don't worry, the queen mother, the servants are all arranged properly - today Xiaochuanzi went to buy, the carriage broke down halfway, met Xiao Xiuzhuan by chance, and returned to the palace with Xiao Xiuxuan, the guard saw Xiao Xiuxuan on Xiao Xiuxuan's carriage. The eunuch is Xiaochuanzi."
Xiaochuanzi did go out to buy things today, but after this incident, before he came back, Eunuch Qin sent a master in the big family to intercept him.
When Gu Jiao left the palace, she still used the identity of Xiaochuanzi.
The reason is that something went wrong with the purchased fabric, and Ogawako went to exchange it.
At night, the real Xiaochuanzi would return to the palace with the changed cloth.
Qin Gonggong continued: "There are also witnesses, Liu Guards in the Imperial Guard and Zhou Mammy from Lenggong will see a woman dressed in Tsing Yi and carrying a small back basket haunting nearby, and it is speculated that the other party entered through the wall from Lenggong. of."
These things were not what Xiao Liulang and Gu Jiao asked Empress Dowager Zhuang to do.
Empress Dowager Zhuang snorted with a stern face, "Humph! You're not afraid of revealing your stuff! Do you really think you've done it perfectly?"
Eunuch Qin couldn't help laughing.
Obviously I like it very much in my heart. I appreciate that the two children are not afraid of tigers when they are born, but they have to pretend to be disgusted.
Eunuch Qin said with a smile: "It's not because they know that the queen mother will take care of them? The queen mother trusts them, and they also give their backs to the queen mother!"
"Humph!"
I don't know if it was the first time I hummed.
The trust between people is never expressed with words, it is a tacit understanding in action, trust in a person's sincerity, and trust in a person's ability.
It's just... pretty cool.
Empress Dowager Zhuang hummed.
Gu Jiao and Xiao Liulang returned to Bishui Hutong.
Tonight, the owner of the orchard invited a troupe and set up a stage in the orchard. All the neighbors and neighbors went to the play, as did Yao Shi and a few children at home.
The home is empty.
Although they had dinner, there was a commotion in the palace, and the two of them were a little hungry now.
"Let's go out to eat." Xiao Liulang said, in the end, she couldn't bear to go to cook at night, not to mention that this place is close to the bustling street, so it's very convenient to eat whatever you want.
"Okay." Gu Jiao responded.
They went to Xuanwu Street.
The capital city is always extraordinarily lively on summer nights, with shops lined up one after another, hawker stalls like a long line, horse carriages and horses slowly passing by from time to time in the center of the street, and pedestrians on both sides are endlessly flowing, one after another.
In the past, Gu Jiao walked on the outside, she wanted to protect her husband, but today she was put on the inside by Xiao Liulang.
Xiao Liulang was leaning on crutches, and his body was obviously more masculine than last year, blocking the torrent of crowd for her.
However, there was a trader who was carrying a load and didn't go in the middle of the road, so he had to go through it and almost bumped into Gu Jiao.
Xiao Liulang pulled her arm, but then his hand did not release immediately, he hesitated and slipped down and took her hand: "Don't get lost."
Gu Jiao was stunned for a while, then smiled: "Okay."
Master, don't get lost.
Xiao Liulang was almost blinded by her smile. He looked forward and asked, "What do you want to eat?"
"Well, it's all right!" she said. "What would you like to eat?"
He said, "I can too."
Neither of them are picky eaters.
Xiao Liulang looked east and said, "There's a new noodle restaurant over there. Would you like to try it? His noodles are delicious."
"Have you eaten?" Gu Jiao turned to look at him and asked.
"Yeah." He nodded, "I ate it when I was a kid. At that time, their family hadn't opened in such a prosperous area, and they had to go to a very remote suburb to eat. In recent years, it seems to have made a fortune and opened several branches. "
Regarding his former identity, he would not take the initiative to talk about it, but if it was mentioned, he would no longer deliberately avoid it.
It's just that he never admitted who he really was.
The illegitimate son of Marquis Xuanping, Xiao Liulang, is the identity he can now reveal to those close to him.
There are not many people who know this identity. Gu Jiao, Yao Shi and the little monk in the family know that Gu Yan may have guessed something, but it should not have guessed Xiao Heng's step.
As for Gu Jiao, Xiao Liulang didn't ask which step she guessed.
And Gu Jiao doesn't seem to plan to break the casserole and ask to the end, she respects him, trusts him, no matter who he is.
Gu Jiao curled her lips: "Okay, then let's go eat the braised noodles!"
Don't look at this new noodle restaurant, but it's full upstairs and downstairs.
"Well, so many people eat noodles so late?" Gu Jiao asked strangely.
The second shopkeeper smiled apologetically: "It's newly opened, and most of the regular customers are there. Besides, our shop not only has noodles, but also our cold dishes and stewed soups! It's hot at the moment, and it's hot in the house. Let's set a table for the two of you in the yard, cool!"
There are also several pictures in front of the store. At first glance, it looks like a food stall in a previous life.
Gu Jiao felt a little intimacy.
Xiao Liulang glanced at her and said to the shop assistant, "Okay, you can go and set it up."
"Hey! Two guest officers, please come this way!" The shop assistant welcomed the two of them into the noodle shop with a big smile, walked through the lobby, and came to the spacious courtyard.
The yard is very large and quiet, but the view is not blocked. Sitting here can have a panoramic view of the scene in the restaurant.
There is a feeling of seeing all the sails in the world.
The shop assistant brought a table and benches.
The two sat on a bench, each ordered a bowl of braised noodles, and two more cold dishes. The stewed soup was gone, and they would be wasted if they couldn't finish it.
Waiting for the kung fu to make the noodles, the shop assistant came over with a smile and asked, "Second guest officers, we have run out of tables in our shop, and two more guests have come. Can you sit at a table with you?"
Neither of them commented.
The second shopkeeper brought people over, but no one would have expected the prince and the princess to come.
The two of them worked privately in microservices, with no palace maids and eunuchs, and only one master from the inside as a coachman.
The Crown Prince and Crown Princess did not expect to meet Xiao Liulang and Gu Jiao here.
When the prince sees Xiao Liulang now, he will think of the thick stack of arithmetic problems, and his brain hurts instantly!
The prince had never seen Gu Jiao, but he was surprised to see Xiao Liulang sitting with a woman.
I heard that Xiao Liulang became a relative.
Is this woman Xiao Liulang's wife or one of those nonsense women he is outside
The prince didn't care, a woman was a vassal of a man, and whether this woman was Xiao Liulang's wife, the prince, would not look at her directly.
The prince frowned, a little reluctant to eat here.
After all, whoever faces a teacher like Xiao Liulang will not be in the mood to eat, and their minds are full of questions from him, okay
But the prince couldn't drive Xiao Liulang away, that would be too arrogant and domineering, and it was not in line with the reputation he had established among the people over the years.
He wants to go.
The Crown Princess suddenly pulled his sleeve and said softly, "Your Highness, there is a seat here."
"He..." Prince Xin said, didn't you recognize who that guy was? Xiao Liulang! He looks like my uncle's son, my father's confidant, and my Hanlin Academy teacher!
The Crown Princess said warmly, "It seems to be Xiao Xiuzhuan, what a coincidence."
As she spoke, her eyes fell on Xiao Liulang's beautiful and unparalleled face.
Just at this moment, the second shopkeeper brought two bowls of braised noodles: "Second guest, your braised noodles!"
Xiao Liulang didn't lift his eyelids, as if the second shopkeeper's voice was too loud, so he didn't hear the Crown Princess's words.
The princess was slightly embarrassed.
The prince thought she said that to himself, and sighed helplessly: "Yes, it's him, what a coincidence."
The crown prince's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she said with a smile, "The capital is so big that you can meet him even after a late-night snack. It's the fate of the prince and Xiao Xiuzhuan."
The voice was not loud, but it was just enough for Xiao Liulang and Gu Jiao to hear.
Neither of them paid any attention to her.
The prince said disdainfully: "Who wants to have a relationship with him!"
"I'm hungry," said the princess.
"Then, sit down!" The prince reluctantly pulled the princess to sit down opposite the two of them, and said to the shop assistant, "Try all the delicious dishes you have here!"
"Can the prince finish eating?" Xiao Liulang finally ignored him, but his tone was not good.
The prince glanced at the two bowls of braised noodles in front of the two, thinking that this was too shabby, and he said generously: "I will treat you tonight, Xiao Xiuzhuan can eat whatever you want, so don't be polite to me. If the salary of the Hanlin Academy is not high. , Xiao Xiuzhuan can come to my house to be a staff member."
Xiao Liulang looked at him lightly: "It is a serious crime to form a party for selfishness. Is the Crown Prince sure to do this?"
It is not uncommon to raise aides and diners in the mansion. The emperor usually keeps his eyes closed, but if it is raised on the head of the emperor's disciples, it will touch the emperor's bottom line.
Xiao Liulang said lukewarmly: "I am a disciple of the Emperor, and I should serve His Majesty wholeheartedly. The Crown Prince asked me to go to your house by name, and where would He put His Majesty?"
The prince choked and fell silent.
Just now, he only cared about teasing Xiao Liulang, and he forgot that this guy was a two-ranked scholar, had been summoned by his father, had eaten the Luming Banquet, and was a serious disciple of the emperor.
Are you digging the corner of your father's emperor
What do others think of him as a prince
"Cough cough!" The prince said sternly, "Gu Fang is just testing you, just remember your identity."
Soon, the two's cold dishes were also served.
Xiao Liulang took a piece of the most tender mutton and put it in Gu Jiao's bowl.
The Crown Princess looked at Xiao Liulang and then at Gu Jiao.
This is the first time that she has met the two at close range. Xiao Liulang's appearance and the boyish face in her impression are constantly overlapping, but they are repeatedly stripped.
That sunny little boy, his eyes are innocent, warm and clear.
The Xiao Liulang in front of him has a lot of alienation and coldness that refuses people thousands of miles away. His facial features are less childish than those of the past, and a little more restrained and heroic.
However, the way he looked at Gu Jiao was different, with a tenderness that even he had never noticed.
He used to look at her like this, as if she was the only one in his eyes.
The princess secretly squeezed the veil tightly.
What am I thinking
Why do you take him as A-Heng again
The mutton here is very suitable for Gu Jiao, she eats it very deliciously.
The Crown Prince didn't intend to pay attention to her, but Xiao Liulang choked him, and he was really embarrassed when he didn't speak up, so he unconsciously set his eyes on Gu Jiao's face.
I don't know if I don't see it, I was startled when I saw her, what happened to her face—
"Guest officer! Your dish is here!"
The second shopkeeper filled the table with the shop's signature dishes.
Although it is dazzling, but somehow, he always felt that Xiao Liulang's plate of mutton was the best!
Gu Jiao and Xiao Liulang almost finished eating, and were about to leave when Gu Jiao suddenly sniffed: "Little Er, why is it so delicious?"
The shop assistant said with a smile: "It's the sweet-scented osmanthus brewed in our shop. If the guest officer likes it, I'll give you a jar! The new shop is open, welcome to come often in the future!"
"Is this wine?" Gu Jiao asked, looking at the bottle handed over by the second shop assistant.
The shop assistant said: "It's not alcohol! You can't get drunk! The girl's family likes—"
Gu Jiao took a sip.
The next second, with a bang, the little head hit the table and got drunk!
Thanks to Xiao Liulang's quick eyes and hands, he put the back of his hand on her forehead in time.
The second shopkeeper scolded: "The guest officer is really... invincible for drinking..."
The princess said softly: "We have a carriage, let the driver take you back."
The prince pouted secretly, why was he being so nice to them
Xiao Liulang said expressionlessly, "No need."
The prince said: "Look, people still don't appreciate it."
Xiao Liulang ignored the crown prince, lightly patted Gu Jiao's small shoulder with his other hand, and whispered in her ear, "Jiaojiao, it's time to go back."
"Huh?" Gu Jiao stared.
"It's time to go home," he said softly.
Gu Jiaoteng sat up straight with a small body, her phoenix eyes were wide and round, and her expression was extremely serious: "I'm not drunk!"
"Yeah." He coaxed her lightly, his lips curled slightly, "Jiaojiao is not drunk."
That clean young voice, with a touch of man's magnetism, is straight to the heart of people.
Rokuro, who is very fond of him.
(End of this chapter)