Jiang Yanyi could sense that Feng Shuo hated the Imperial City and the dragon throne in the Golden Palace. Perhaps what he wanted to do most when he was young was to take the Grand Empress Dowager and escape from that cannibalistic place.
But having come to this point, whether to accept the court's surrender conditions, or to fight to the death and completely change the world in the face of internal and external troubles, the final decision still needs to be discussed with the advisers.
Seeing that the great event was about to be accomplished, most of Feng Shuo's subordinates, both civil officials and military generals, were unwilling to accept the result.
Instead, the various princes who had previously formed an alliance with Feng Shuo just stood by and watched - the imperial court sent envoys to paint a big picture, and whoever would ultimately dominate the country, whether it was Feng Shuo or the young emperor who was about to ascend the throne, would not be spared from their benefits.
When the young emperor ascends the throne, the entire court will rely on a woman like the eldest princess to support it. Wouldn't it be wonderful if they could undermine the imperial power at that time
After Feng Shuo seized the throne, he naturally rewarded them according to their merits. However, facing a king who was good at fighting, who among the civil and military officials in the court would not have to keep their tail between their legs
Therefore, the various princes were still allies of Feng Shuo on the surface, but when discussing whether to accept the court's rewards, they used the interests of the country and family as a shield to persuade Feng Shuo to surrender.
Feng Shuo's advisers headed by Chi Qing were not there to do their job for free, so how could they just do as the court wished? They threatened to ask the court to send troops first to resist foreign enemies together, and then settle their private accounts after recovering the lost territory.
The imperial court naturally disagreed. Feng Shuo's men were well versed in inciting the people and creating public pressure. Nursery rhymes and doggerel poems that cursed the imperial court for only fighting among itself and doing nothing when foreign enemies invaded spread from Hengzhou all the way to the capital, and public anger was aroused to the extreme.
Even officials from the capital would be thrown donkey dung into their sedan chairs and cursed at by people on the street when they went out.
Those who were originally loyal to the court were just some foolish ministers. The king and the people were the scale in their hearts. Now that the country has fallen and the court is unwilling to send troops, they are inevitably disappointed.
Now Feng Shiyan was bedridden with the poison in his lungs and could not attend court at all. The ministers could kneel in front of the palace gate for a whole day but could not see the emperor.
As the saying goes, "A civil official dies for his remonstration, a military official dies for his battle." Several strong-willed civil officials kowtowed in front of the palace gate, but still only the Grand Princess arrived. How could they not be disheartened
At one time, civil officials and military generals who cared about the country wrote letters to the emperor requesting to resign. There were only a few capable people in the court, and this move was like adding insult to injury.
The imperial court was forced into a desperate situation and finally sent 10,000 cavalry to Hengzhou to fight off the foreign enemies.
The various princes had not expected that it would be the imperial court that would be forced to bow first, and now that things had come to this, they had no choice but to follow suit and send troops.
With the help of all parties, the Hengzhou defenders, who had been fighting the Minghan Kingdom for several months, were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
*****
Before we knew it, it's already autumn.
After enduring the unbearable hot summer, Jiang Yanyi actually likes the cool autumn in the south.
Her needlework skills were now quite good. When she had free time, she would sit in the courtyard covered with ginkgo leaves for several hours in the afternoon, making clothes with several embroiderers in the palace.
Huo Jianjia ran in excitedly holding a few gift boxes, "Boss, Madam An asked someone to bring us something!"
Jiang Yanyi had just finished sewing the last stitch. She twisted a knot, bit off the thread, raised her head and said with a smile, "Time flies. It seems like it was only yesterday that I left Xizhou, but several months have passed."
Chenyu helped take over the clothes that Jiang Yanyi had made. It was an ink-colored robe, and you could tell it was for men just by looking at the style.
She pursed her lips and smiled secretly: "Yes, it took you more than half a month to make this robe for the prince."
Jiang Yanyi pretended to hit her, "You chatterbox!"
Chenyu quickly dodged with a smile, begging for mercy: "My dear master, I know I was wrong, please forgive me this time."
Jiang Yanyi glared at her helplessly, then stood up to see the things Madam An Shao had sent.
Several tightly packed gift boxes were piled on the stone table.
Jiang Yanyi first finished reading the letter written to her by Madam An Shao, and sighed, "She was thoughtful to send so many things from far away."
Madam An Shao had taken a lot of supplements during her pregnancy. She was worried that Jiang Yanyi would be exhausted from the hardship in Hengzhou, so she brought a lot of supplements to her. Seeing that the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching, she also sent a box of moon cakes.
Jiang Yanyi opened the mooncake box and an enticing aroma wafted out.
Some of the golden and lightly oily crusts are printed with auspicious patterns of fortune and happiness, while others are printed with peonies or lotus flowers.
In this war-torn land, looking at a box of mooncakes like this, I was inexplicably moved.
Jiang Yanyi felt mixed emotions when he thought of the three sisters of the Chu family and Old Madam Chu who were far away in Xizhou, Chu Chengmao who stayed in Yuzhou, and Chu Yangui who followed Chu Changping to the capital.
It might be difficult for their family to get together this year.
Jiang Yanyi put away the sadness in his heart and quickly made a decision: "Jianjia, go call Yang Xiu over."
Huo Jianjia quickly called Yang Xiu over, and Jiang Yanyi instructed him, "Go to the Liu family's cargo ship and let them know, and ask them to ship some flour to Hengzhou."
"Not enough food and fodder in the military camp?" This was Yang Xiu's first reaction.
Jiang Yanyi laughed and shook his head: "Mid-Autumn Festival is coming, I want to bring the women of Hengzhou City to make some mooncakes for the soldiers."
Sometimes people are so strange. The more difficult it is to reunite, the more they long for it.
Yang Xiu had been in a military camp with Chu Changping before, and knew that there were basically no solar terms in the military camp, and one should not expect these when fighting a war. One should be content to be alive, but not having the conditions to celebrate a festival does not mean not wanting to celebrate it.
Leading the people of Hengzhou to make mooncakes for the soldiers during the Mid-Autumn Festival can, to some extent, be regarded as a unity between the military and the people, which can definitely boost morale.
Yang Xiu went downstairs to purchase flour without saying a word.
Chen Yu sighed, "Boss, you are really kind-hearted. Why don't you just let Huotouying make the mooncakes by themselves? Why do you have to pay for it out of your own pocket?"
Jiang Yanyi tapped her forehead and said, "There are not only soldiers under the prince in the Hengzhou camp now, but also the imperial court and the various princes. The prince is the host. If he gives mooncakes to his own soldiers but not to the allied forces, it will be bad for his reputation. We, the people of Hengzhou, raised money to make these and give them to the Hengzhou soldiers. No one can say it's wrong."
Chen Yu touched her forehead and smiled shyly: "The boss is really thoughtful."
Jiang Yanyi glanced at the blue sky and said, "I wonder how Yangui and his uncle are doing in the capital. I don't know if he has written to Xizhou since I arrived in Hengzhou. I will ask the prince where he lived first. If there is enough time, I would like to make some mooncakes and ask someone to bring them to him and his uncle."
*****
Capital city.
The once prosperous capital is now desolate under the shadow of war.
Most of the shops along the street were closed, and there were few pedestrians on the street. Ragged beggars huddled in the corners, their eyes tired and numb. Occasionally, soldiers patrolling the city passed by, and some sounds could be heard in the silent street.
Chu Yangui sat on the top floor of a teahouse facing the street, looking through the half-open window at the sedan chair surrounded by the imperial guards passing by on the street. There was mockery on the corners of his mouth and the ferocious hatred in his eyes was like weeds that could never be burned, which would cover the entire field again if the wind blew.
"My mother must have been in so much pain when she died, how come he is still alive and well?" Chu Yangui was smiling, but there was a chill in his ink-black eyes.
The sedan chair escorted by the imperial guards stopped at a mansion. On the plaque in front of the mansion gate were printed the huge words "Jiang Mansion".
Minister Jiang came out of the sedan. He looked much thinner than before, and his hair and beard were obviously gray. But his complexion was fine, and he was neat and tidy. He did not look like someone who had suffered any hardship.
He bowed to the leading imperial guard and said, "Thank you, sir, for sending Jiang back home."
"You are too polite, Lord Jiang. I will return to the palace to report now." The leading imperial guard clasped his fists towards Minister Jiang on horseback and left with his men.
Minister Jiang stood there and watched them go away. When he was about to enter the mansion, he seemed to notice something and glanced at the teahouse that had been closed for a long time not far away, but the doors and windows of the teahouse were closed and there was nothing unusual.
"Master, what are you looking at?" The Jiang family's housekeeper looked much more haggard. It was obvious that the Jiang family had not had an easy time in the capital over the past six months.
After Minister Jiang was imprisoned, all the servants in his mansion were dismissed, leaving only him.
Minister Jiang shook his head and walked through the gate. Seeing the dead leaves all over the ground and the cold and dilapidated courtyard, he felt a little melancholy for a moment.
People always regret something when they lose it.
When his children were around, he felt they were noisy and never had a good face towards the two children who were spoiled by Madam Jiang. He had someone in his heart, and when he looked at Madam Jiang, he found that she had flaws everywhere. She was not gentle, considerate, or good at writing poetry. She got a headache when she read. He had never had a common language with Madam Jiang in his life.
But now he feels that maybe things weren't as bad as he thought, but he can never go back.
While he was reminiscing here, Chu Yangui had already come out of the inn and got on the carriage back home.
Perhaps it was because Chu Yangui had not seen the sun for many years, but his face was always pale and sickly. It was just the beginning of autumn, and when he went out, Chu Zhong had already put a thin blanket on his knees.
"Earlier, Concubine Xi asked the emperor to release Jiang Jing'an from prison, but the Grand Princess was in control of the government at the time and was unwilling to fulfill Concubine Xi's wish. Now that there is no one else available in the court, Jiang Jing'an was released." Chu Zhong told Chu Yangui the news from the palace.
Chu Yangui twisted the red sandalwood Buddhist beads in his hand, and the hostility between his eyebrows was well hidden under his gentle and elegant demeanor. "What a deep love between father and daughter, it's touching."
The corners of his lips curved, but there was not much smile in his eyes: "The people on the prince's side only want to use the power of the previous dynasty to fight Feng Shiyan, but I don't want to see this father and daughter have an easy time. Anyway, Feng Shiyan will not live for many days, so find a way to let him know that the poison in his body is all caused by his Concubine Xi. It's interesting to let dogs bite dogs, isn't it?"
Chu Zhong looked at the young man in front of him who was twisting Buddhist beads and smiling, and felt a chill on his back.
The string of Buddhist beads was given to Chu Yangui by the abbot when he was setting up a memorial tablet for his mother at Huguo Temple. The abbot said that Chu Yangui had a noble aura and would be a great man in the future, but unfortunately he had too much evil spirit, so he gave him the string of Buddhist beads in the hope that it would help dissolve the evil spirit in him.
Chu Zhong didn't know whether the boy's brutality had diminished after wearing the Buddhist beads for some time, but he was very clear that the boy's methods were becoming more and more ruthless, with some of the aura of the young King of Liaonan.
Chu Zhong said: "You said that these subordinates will be deployed, but the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, do you want to go to the Third Master?"
Chu Yangui did not answer directly, but asked in a roundabout way, "Has Xizhou replied?"
The carriage jolted a bit, and Chu Zhong reflexively wanted to help Chu Yangui steady himself, but he saw that he had supported himself by the wall of the carriage. Under his wide robe, his arms, which had been practicing sword for several months, had tendons flexed when he exerted force, and he was not at all "weak".
Chu Zhong was stunned for a moment before he remembered to answer the question he had just asked: "The young lady has gone to Hengzhou to transport medicinal materials, so she probably didn't receive your letter."
Chu Yangui hummed softly, with an expression that did not show joy or anger. After a moment, she said, "Sister is still the same. When she likes someone, she will open her heart to him/her, regardless of what kind of situation she will end up in..."
Chu Zhong hesitated and said, "How can the Lu family's son compare with the Liaonan King? The Liaonan King is a hero. The young lady has never suffered any grievances in Hengzhou. When the Third Master learned that the young lady went to Hengzhou, he sent people to secretly check on her early in the morning. The Liaonan King sent people to protect the young lady very well. The young lady's trip to the south this time also won the hearts of the people. The people all say that she is a heroine."
Only then did the corners of Chu Yangui's mouth show a noticeable curve.
He is willing to bear all the filth in the world alone, and only hopes that his sister can live a happy and worry-free life.
He twisted the beads in his hand one by one, muttering, "My sister's wedding is not far away. My uncle is busy with the war and may not have time to prepare for it. I have to prepare a decent dowry for my sister."
He would kill those who deserved to die one by one, making sure they all died before his sister's wedding to avoid bad luck.
The author has something to say: I was tortured to death by the thesis these days. I finally submitted the first draft at the cost of becoming bald. qaq
Ah, it feels so relaxing to finish writing the paper! I can update it tomorrow! (fist)
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2021-03-01 00:47:05~2021-03-02 23:58:27~
Thanks to the little angel who threw the rocket launcher: pp 1;
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Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 30 bottles of Deer Eats Stars; 20 bottles of Zongzi; 3 bottles of Chenyu and myvanillaworld;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!