In the early winter of the third year of Yuan Jubilee, the first snow fell in Yejing. The goose feather-like snow fell one after another, covering the scattered blood on the ground. A carriage galloped down the street, took a few spins with snowflakes, and ran away.
On the silent street, the man's roar woke up the sleeping people.
"Hurry up! Hurry up!"
Xiao Zhige's eyes were red, and he hugged the weak person in his arms tightly, and calmed down his voice to comfort him: "Don't be afraid, I'll take you back to the palace, you'll be fine..." The man's cold and hard voice was very soft. , as if for fear of disturbing the person in his arms.
He was holding a handsome man in his arms, with a woven gold robe, a white jade crown, long eyebrows and phoenix eyes, straight and upturned mountain roots, and lips that were moist and pale. There is also a tear mole under the corner of the left eye, which adds a bit of beauty to him. If it weren't for the fact that his face was pale at this moment, with a few strands of blood still leaking from the corners of his mouth, this scene of a beauty in his arms would have been another romantic affair.
"Your Majesty..."
The slender eyelashes trembled, and An Changqing struggled to open his eyes, only to see Xiao Zhige's anxious face.
He was a little startled. The two have been close for ten years, but they are not close. Back then, Xiao Zhige didn't ask about his wishes, and begged the Empress Dowager Yizhi to marry him.
Maybe Xiao Zhige could see his reluctance, but he didn't force him, so the two of them lived in the palace for all these years. Later, Xiao Zhige became emperor, and the two of them just changed places and continued to go their separate ways.
Such an intimate hug was the first time. Although the relationship is not deep, Xiao Zhige's anxiety does not seem to be fake. An Changqing even thought that the rumors outside were not all true.
"Changqing..." Xiao Zhige met his eyes, his voice trembling, and asked in a low voice, "Does it hurt?"
An Changqing regained his senses and wanted to shake his head, but a burst of pain suddenly surged in his internal organs, as if a sharp knife had been stabbed into his body, and then twisted the handle of the knife to pierce and twist the soft organs, smashing the five internal organs. The six organs were all smashed into a puddle of mud.
xiaoshuting.la
"It hurts..." An Changqing bounced like a dehydrated fish, her teeth clenched tightly, but more and more blood spilled from the corners of her mouth.
Xiao Zhige hugged him harder and harder, as if he wanted to help him relieve himself, but he couldn't do anything, so he could only stroke his hair in vain, comforting him over and over again: "It will be here soon, it will be here soon..."
The rapid sound of hooves stepped through the palace gate and drove straight into the Qiwu Palace.
More than a dozen imperial physicians were already kneeling outside the hall to greet him, and Xiao Zhige slammed them in and carefully placed them on the bed. The imperial physicians did not dare to come out, they bowed slightly and stepped forward to check in an orderly manner.
An Changqing closed her eyes tightly, cold sweat dripping from her forehead, and the blood overflowing from the corners of her mouth could not even wipe off the handkerchief, and gradually dyed her clothes red.
The imperial physicians shook their hands to check the pulse, look at me, I look at you, and finally knelt on the ground together. The court judge with gray hair and beard knelt on the ground tremblingly, and said with a trembling voice: "I am incompetent, Your Majesty forgive me!"
In a word, the verdict was pronounced.
"What's the use of raising you scumbags alone?!" Xiao Zhige kicked the elderly court judge in the chest. He has always had a violent temper, and after years of training in the army, he has a good strength, and he kicked people into the gilt bronze stove in the corner of the wall with one kick. The court judge spit out a mouthful of blood, but he didn't have time to wipe it, so he quickly got up and knelt on the ground, shouting in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, spare your life!"
"Your Majesty, spare your life!" The rest of the imperial physicians immediately followed Yitou to grab the ground, both of which were two battles.
Xiao Zhige gasped heavily, only to feel that a string in his mind was about to break. Reluctantly calmed down his anger, he swept over the imperial physicians who were begging for mercy, and said solemnly: "Give it to Gu Zhi! If you can't cure it, you will all be buried with the Queen!"
…
An Changqing was awakened by a burst of crying. He opened his eyes in a daze, only to feel that his body was much lighter, and the pain that tormented him disappeared, as if he could fly in the next moment.
He thought so, and he did. Fluttering out of the hall door, he saw under the steps, the palace maids and eunuchs of Qiwu Palace knelt all over the ground, each screaming, with sad and fearful expressions.
Xiao Zhige was dressed in the Ming Huanggong dragon suit and the dragon crown on his head. He stood alone on the steps, his eyes were full of anger. It was very strange. In the past, An Changqing was always afraid of him, and he wanted to avoid him on weekdays. But looking at it now, I'm not afraid anymore, I just feel that there are many emotions that he can't see clearly under the man's violent and gloomy expression.
An Changqing watched in confusion for a while, and vaguely understood Xiao Zhige's intentions when he saw that the An family members were all escorted to the front of the hall.
Yesterday was the sixty-fifth birthday of his father, Prime Minister An Zhike of Great Ye. Xiao Zhige took him with him for a feast for the guests. But unexpectedly, An Zhike, together with the former abolition prince Xiao Qi'an, held a feast for the family, waiting for Xiao Zhige to enter the urn with him.
Xiao Zhige noticed in advance and escaped the catastrophe, but he drank poisonous wine, and before the rebellion subsided, the poison broke out. Looking down at the translucent palm, An Changqing barely twitched the corner of his mouth, showing no mercy for the An family.
On this day, blood flowed like a river in front of Qiwu Palace. Nearly fifty people from the An family were killed by dozens of experienced executioners. Full of the smell of human blood. The palace servants who were kneeling on the sidelines watching the execution were so frightened that they didn't dare to move their knees even though they were soaked with blood.
Emperor Ye Wu's Xiao Zhige was known for his brutality. Since he fought with Bei Di when he was a boy and killed 60,000 Bei Di's soldiers, his name spread. Three years after he ascended the throne, he went to war again, and the people of Daye were not tired of living and corpses. Coupled with this one today, I am afraid that the notoriety will increase to a higher level.
However, Xiao Zhige didn't care anymore.
Instructing the guards to throw the bodies of the An family into the mass grave, Xiao Zhige entered the Qiwu Palace alone.
The interior of Qiwu Palace has been cleaned up, and there is a bronze gilt burner in the corner, which warms the interior of the palace. In the center of the inner palace is a large bed with carved red sandalwood, with dark golden curtains hanging down, and you can faintly see the bed lying on the bed. silhouette.
Xiao Zhige subconsciously softened his expression, walked over lightly, and lifted the curtain.
The blood stains on An Changqing's face were scrubbed clean, and the long black hair was re-tied with a sapphire crown, with a peaceful demeanor, as if sleeping peacefully. Xiao Zhige looked at him quietly for a while, then stretched out his hand as if he wanted to touch him, but when he was halfway through, he shrank back, worrying about something, a wry smile overflowed from the man's mouth: "Forget it, you never liked me, at this time I won't make you unhappy anymore."
An Changqing, who was floating beside him, opened his mouth to say no, he didn't dislike him, he just never really understood him. Every time I see his sullen brows, and think of those terrifying rumors, I will instinctively fear, and naturally I no longer dare to take the initiative to get close.
It's just that no matter what he wants to say at this time, it's already too late.
Xiao Zhige stayed alone for a while, then called the palace servants in and sent An Changqing's body to the burial. The palace people lowered their hands and closed their eyes, entered quietly, and filed out with An Changqing's body.
In the end, only Xiao Zhige was left.
An Changqing looked at his back, only to feel that the emperor with a straight back seemed to be stained with a heavy twilight by the setting sun.
"Master, do you want to eat something?"
A familiar voice suddenly sounded in his ears, An Changqing opened his eyes in a trance, and saw An Fu's festive face as white dough. Seeing that he didn't speak, An Fu called out again, "Master?"
An Changqing moved his body in confusion, only to feel weak for a while. It seems to have turned into a ball of cotton, soft and fluttering, and the movements are not realistic, as if it is not his own body.
Yes, it really shouldn't be his body. After all, he had already died, and he had drifted around as a wisp of soul for many years.
Seeing him like this, An Fu panicked, and hurriedly went out to call someone, "Is there a problem with the medicine? Young master, wait! I'll call the doctor right now!"
After speaking, he hurriedly ran out, but unexpectedly bumped into a group of people walking in.
"This is going to go out, what are you still running around?"
The one who spoke was a handsome middle-aged man with a pair of phoenix eyes and An Changqing's eyes. He was An Changqing's father, the Prime Minister of Great Ye and the Hou of Jing'an, An Zhike. He followed his wife Li Shi and Li Shi's maid, and behind him there were several servants with big shoulders and round waists.
An Fu hurriedly knelt down and replied, "Young Master, he is a little uncomfortable, maybe he took too much medicine yesterday..."
An Changqing was unwilling to this marriage from the beginning. Although the folk customs of Daye are open and the south wind prevails, there is never a precedent for marrying a male wife. What's more, Xiao Zhige, the king of the Northern War, was notorious in Yejing. It was rumored that his temperament was temperamental, cruel and bloodthirsty. Every month, servants who were beaten to death and maimed were brought out from the house. Even if An Changqing was just an unloved son-in-law, he would not be reconciled to let him marry Xiao Zhige and become a fearful and precarious princess from now on.
All he was thinking about was to gain fame as soon as possible, and to protect his mother and take care of his younger sister.
But the marriage with the Northern War King shattered all his plans.
He also tried to fight, but what he got was just a packet of soft tendons. After eating it, he was completely exhausted, and he could only let the maids dress up like puppets and put on red clothes.
"Don't bother, the royal family's welcome team has already arrived." An Zhike waved his hand, his eyes stopped on An Changqing's face, and then he said, "Foster the third young master out."
In a daze, An Changqing was covered with a red hijab, and then two servants carried him out.
He couldn't exert any strength on his body, and his mind was confused. In a trance, he only felt that the two arms supporting him were extraordinarily strong, and the pain from the arms was extraordinarily real, not like a dream at all.
After getting on the sedan chair, the welcoming team chirped and beat, and went around Yejing □□ before arriving at the Bei Zhan Palace.
The palace was full of guests, and everyone was tacitly talking and laughing, as if they were watching a farce.
The mother of the Northern War King passed away early, and when he was ten years old, the immortal master of Taiqingguan ordered him to say that he was too violent and was riddled with murder. Therefore, the Anqing Emperor became more and more unhappy. However, when he was twelve years old, he invited himself to go to the army to train. For eight years at the frontier, Xiao Zhige went from a nobody to become one of the twelve generals of the Great Ye, holding the military power of Yanzhou, all of which depended on the merits and glory of killing mountains and blood. And the name of Xiao Zhige, the king of the Northern War, "killing the god", not only the people of Beidi were afraid of the wind, but even the people of Daye were afraid of his brutality.
There are even children in the market who sing: kill gods in the sky, Tai Sui in the world, and Asuras in the underworld. Xiao Zhige's fierce name is evident.
The more fierce Xiao Zhige's reputation became, the more Anqing Emperor disliked this son, but he had to rely on him to guard Yanzhou to compete with the Beidi people. Originally, he was worried that he would have thoughts that he should not have, but now he took the initiative to reject the Queen Mother's marriage proposal, saying that he liked men and that he would marry An Xiangguo's third son as his concubine. Although absurd, it is also reassuring.
Under the great joy of Longyan, Emperor Anqing even ordered Zongzheng Temple to prepare well, and the marriage of the Northern War Palace was so lively arranged, even more lively than the prince's wedding. It's just that the guests who came to watch the ceremony, whether they sincerely congratulate or want to see the excitement of the Northern War King, only they know.
During the staggered preparations at the banquet, there were also people who held their hands for the third young master of the prime minister's residence. It is a pitiful beauty who fell into the hands of the violent Northern War King. I don't know how to be sparred, and I don't know if she can survive the wedding night.
Speaking of which, the three young masters are quite famous in Yejing. His biological mother was An Xiangguo's concubine, who was once a Qing court lady in the largest green house in Yejing. She was born beautiful and graceful, graceful and graceful, and was talented in singing and dancing. At that time, she was known as "the first beauty in Yejing". Following the good looks of her biological mother, An Changqing was exquisite and cute when she was young, and when she was at least young, her eyebrows and eyes were widened, and she became more and more handsome. It’s just that beauty is beautiful, but she’s an empty-hearted beauty. I heard that she once angered the master and was kicked out of the clan.
The guests expressed regret on their mouths, but with expressions of interest on their faces, they watched An Changqing, who was covered in a red hijab, being helped off the sedan chair by his wife.
An Changqing's head was covered, and he could only see the ground below his feet. His dazed mind was now clearer, and the weakness of his body dissipated. Now he is only full of doubts, but he doesn't dare to act rashly, so he can only let his wife help him down.
Kankan stood firm, and a skeletonized palm stretched out in front of him. The knuckles are slightly thick, and the finger pulp and tiger's mouth are covered with calluses. Further up is a red and gold-trimmed happy dress with wide sleeves. As for the others, they can't be seen because the red hijab blocks the view.
- This is Xiao Zhige's hand.
An Changqing's heart was pounding, and he remembered that when he was married, there was such a hand reaching out to him. It's just that he was full of unwillingness and fear for the future at that time. He didn't dare to speak out against Xiao Zhige, and refused his outstretched hand with silence.
Didn't even take a good look at the weathered palm.
Gently pursing his lips, An Changqing thought of the desolate but silent emperor who drank alone in Qiwu Palace in the years after his death.
Days are always lived out. Back then, he chose the most difficult path, hurting himself and others. Although I don't know why it's back to the day of the big wedding, An Changqing wants to try another way.
Before retracting that hand, An Changqing held it slowly and firmly.
That hand was as rough as I imagined, and the calluses on the palm rubbed against the skin, tickling and itching, but there was also a sense of stability wrapped around it.
Xiao Zhige felt the softness of the palm of his hand, a strange light flashed across the unfathomable bottom of his eyes, the sullenness between his brows dissipated a little, and his cold and hard lips curved into a shallow arc.
The two walked together to the main hall before letting go of their hands and holding both ends of the red silk instead.
The eunuch Sli sang the salute in a high-pitched voice, "One day to worship the heaven and the earth—"
The two stood side by side, a piece of red silk connected to each other, and bent down in the singing...