The emperor is critically ill, and the entire palace seems calm, but undercurrents are already surging behind the scenes.
The King of Liaonan is far superior to the court in terms of military strength and popular support among the people. Although the fact that the Grand Princess summoned the Prince of Huai to the palace was kept secret, there is no wall that is impenetrable.
As the imperial power weakened, the palace servants began to secretly seek ways out.
Although the eldest princess tried her best to stabilize the court, the situation was already hopeless, and she alone could not stop the tide of dynasty change.
It is hard to tell how many people are loyal in the palace today, and how many are spies for various forces.
When Jiang Yanxi stepped into Feng Shiyan's bedroom, the sunlight was shining in from the carved vermilion lacquered door frame. She was wearing a complicated navy blue palace dress, and her long brocade and embroidered sleeves dragged on the shiny floor tiles. The palace maid beside her was holding a cup of steaming brown medicine.
The bright yellow curtains in the hall were lifted layer by layer by the palace maids, and the gloom in the room finally saw some light. The Yazi beast was breathing out the smoke of ambergris, but it still couldn't cover up the bitter smell of the medicine.
Several palace servants were kneeling in front of Feng Shiyan's bed. Everything here was dead silent, including the once arrogant tyrant lying on the dragon bed.
In a few months, Feng Shiyan had become so thin that he was unrecognizable. He could not eat anything and depended on medicine to survive. His old clothes no longer fit him.
Jiang Yanxi looked at the person on the bed with sunken cheeks and closed eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands and tears kept falling.
Ever since Feng Shiyan found that he was getting thinner day by day, he did not allow Jiang Yanxi to visit him. Every day when he was awake, after explaining the government affairs in the court, he would listen to the palace servants report what Jiang Yanxi did every day.
The tiny sobbing sound still woke Feng Shiyan up. Looking at the person so close to him, his dry lips moved, "Why are you here?"
Because of weakness, his voice was not loud and he was very hoarse.
"Your Majesty..." Jiang Yanxi choked up and couldn't stop sobbing. She did hate him in the past, but now seeing him tortured by the snake venom to this extent, she felt only bitterness in her heart.
She wanted to hug Feng Shiyan and cry, but he was so thin that he was almost a skeleton. She didn't even dare to touch him. She remembered how strong his muscular arms used to be.
The person in front of me was as fragile as a candle in the wind, which could be blown out at any time.
She finally just lay on the bed sobbing.
Feng Shiyan stared at the ceiling of the tent with empty eyes. He had a good bone structure, so even though he was very thin, at first glance he only looked haggard and fragile, and did not look scary.
"Xier, the lotus flowers in the palace have all withered."
He turned his head with difficulty and stroked her long black hair: "I'm sorry, I can't accompany you to the palace to see the lotus flowers."
Even at this point, he still remembered it, but the only thing he didn't do was to accompany her to the palace.
When the capital was under siege, they were not allowed to leave the palace.
Jiang Yanxi shook her head, tears streaming down her face.
She trembled as she held Feng Shiyan's hand, which was so thin that only a layer of skin remained, as if she was protecting a treasure, and tried to force a smile: "Your Majesty, we will go again next year."
Feng Shiyan looked at her red eyes from crying, and held her hand with his five fingers together: "Okay, next year... next year I will go with you."
They all knew it was just a lie.
He couldn't wait until the lotus flowers bloomed next year.
Jiang Yanxi took the medicine bowl from the maid and wiped her eyes in embarrassment, "Your Majesty, I will feed you the medicine."
She finally put away all the thorns on her body and wanted to accompany him through this last journey.
Feng Shiyan now felt nauseous whenever he smelled medicine, but because it was Jiang Yanxi who fed him, he still swallowed it all spoonful by spoonful. However, after drinking only half a bowl, he could no longer hold it in and vomited it all out. The quilt, his own lapels, the corners of his mouth and his jaw were all covered in the medicine juice, making a mess.
The palace maids who were serving on the side rushed over, some wiped his face, some changed his clothes, some changed his quilts. Everyone was silent and quick, as if they were already used to it. Instead, Jiang Yanxi stood aside, at a loss.
When everything was packed up, Feng Shiyan was extremely exhausted. He didn't want Jiang Yanxi to see him in such a mess, so he said, "Xi'er, go back."
Jiang Yanxi responded with tears in her eyes, and left the bedroom, looking back every few steps.
The chief eunuch who served Feng Shiyan glanced at Jiang Yanxi's departing figure with his eyelids drooping, and when he turned around, his expression instantly changed to another compassionate one: "Your Majesty, I have something to say but I don't know whether I should say it or not."
Feng Shiyan closed his eyes and said, "Speak."
The chief eunuch's eyes flickered as he said, "There have been frequent sightings of carrier pigeons in Concubine Xi's palace recently."
Feng Shiyan's eyes, which had been tightly closed, suddenly opened. He turned his head, and the majesty in his eyes was no less than before: "Go on."
The chief eunuch was so frightened that his knees weakened, and he knelt down with his head on the ground: "Old slave... Old slave heard from the gossiping palace servants in Cangjiao Palace that Concubine Xi seemed to have had an affair with Master Lu."
If it was someone else, Feng Shiyan might not have doubted it, but when it came to Lu Linyuan, his doubts and suspicions could no longer be concealed.
He closed his eyes again, "Check."
There was hidden anger in his voice.
The chief eunuch knew that he was obviously beginning to doubt, and seeing that his goal had been achieved, he quickly said, "I obey your order."
****
The maidservant who followed Jiang Yanxi was very cautious. Seeing that Jiang Yanxi had been crying all the way, she returned to the Cangjiao Palace, dismissed the palace maids, and asked in a low voice: "Princess, have you softened your heart?"
Jiang Yanxi's long-held emotions finally erupted. With red eyes, she shouted, "I am also a living person, not just a tool for your revenge!"
The maid frowned, "You are the only blood of the previous royal family. Revenge is your innate responsibility. I advise the princess to leave the palace as soon as possible for her safety. You refused to leave before because you were worried about Minister Jiang. Now Minister Jiang has been released from prison. Once the emperor dies, you will have no protection in the palace. The palace is in chaos now. It is the best choice for us to take the opportunity to leave the palace. Didn't you say before that you would leave the palace after seeing the emperor for the last time today?"
Jiang Yanxi closed her eyes: "I thought I had no heart anymore, but when I saw him like this, I realized that I could still be sad."
The maid said, "Princess, please consider the former officials who are involved in this matter. In three days, Master Lin will send someone to Xuanwu Gate to meet you. If you don't leave, we won't leave either."
She paused and added, "Moreover, if the emperor knew that we gave the poison to Queen Gao, I'm afraid he would no longer be so affectionate to you, Princess."
These words finally dimmed the last glimmer of light in Jiang Yanxi's eyes.
Neither of them noticed that there was a little palace maid outside the door, sticking to the door frame and listening to the noise inside. When she heard what she did, she widened her eyes, covered her mouth, and left quietly.
****
Few people know that the eunuch in charge of the palace also has a private residence outside the palace.
The man who usually looked arrogant and proud, at this moment, smiled and flattered the young man sitting in a wheelchair beside him: "Young Master Jiang is really smart. When the emperor heard that Concubine Xi might have had contact with Lu Linyuan, he immediately asked this old servant to investigate the matter."
Chu Yangui glanced at him, his lips curled up slightly, and his smile was cold.
The chief eunuch slapped himself on the lips and said, "Look at my mouth. I should call you Young Master Chu now."
Chu Yangui poured himself a cup of tea: "Yangui is ill and cannot drink, so I will use tea instead of wine to toast you, father-in-law."
He calculated very accurately. Feng Shiyan could dote on Jiang Yanxi at all costs, but the only thing he could not accept was that she was still in contact with Lu Linyuan. In order to find out whether this was true, he would definitely check everyone in Jiang Yanxi's palace one by one. Those people from the previous dynasty who sneaked into the palace would certainly not be able to hide, and Jiang Yanxi's identity would be revealed to the world.
The chief eunuch raised his glass quickly and said, "Young Master Chu really praised me. When the prince comes to Beijing, I hope you can say a few good words for me in front of him."
Chu Yangui smiled and said, "Of course."
He liked to wear white clothes and had difficulty walking, but his speech and behavior were all gentle and elegant, like a young man from a wealthy family. He did not seem threatening at all.
He asked casually, "I wonder what's going on with the Grand Princess these days?"
The chief eunuch put down his teacup and sighed, "Speaking of which, the capital is still stable on the surface, all thanks to the Grand Princess. To be honest, if she were a man, I'm afraid the throne would not have fallen to Your Majesty."
Chu Yan Gui smiled and responded.
The chief eunuch was afraid that Chu Yangui would misunderstand, so he hurriedly said, "The Grand Princess is the person your Majesty trusts the most. Your Majesty began to suspect the Grand Princess, and the root cause can be traced back to when the Grand Princess helped Mr. Chu leave the capital."
Chu Yangui was unaware of this past event, and his eyes changed slightly: "I hope you can tell me in detail, eunuch."
The chief eunuch sighed, "When Third Master Chu secretly returned to the capital, it was a capital crime that cost him his life. His Majesty ordered the imperial guards to go to the Chu residence to arrest him, but it was the Grand Princess who stopped the imperial guards for half a quarter of an hour on the road, so Third Master Chu was able to escape. Afterwards, His Majesty found out about this matter, and although he did not break up with the Grand Princess, he still had a grudge in his heart and did not dare to trust the Grand Princess as before."
"The Grand Princess feels guilty towards His Majesty, and she has always believed that His Majesty's poisoning was caused by the prince, so she naturally cannot stand on the prince's side. That's why she wants to wait until the emperor passes away, and then support the prince of Huai to take the throne."
Knowing that the Grand Princess had been kind to Chu Changping, Chu Yangui thought for a moment and said to the chief eunuch, "Please tell the Grand Princess the truth about the Emperor's poisoning."
Although the Grand Princess is a woman, her means should not be underestimated, otherwise after Feng Shiyan fell, all the civil and military officials in the court would not be easily intimidated by her.
Without the hatred for poisoning Feng Shiyan, it would save a lot of trouble if he could make peace with the Grand Princess.
The chief eunuch was an old man in the palace and knew that Chu Changping had refused to marry the eldest princess. He immediately said, "Okay, okay."
*****
Western State
On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Yang Xiu and Bing Shao bought the ingredients for making mooncakes early in the morning. Jiang Yanyi also asked people to spread the news that the people of Hengzhou would make mooncakes for the soldiers in the military camp. Many people also voluntarily brought some flour in large and small bags to make them together.
Merchants of all sizes also bought some ingredients. Jiang Yanyi originally had a tight budget for ingredients, but now he doesn't have to worry about running out of ingredients anymore.
Jiang Yanyi had a shed set up in front of the palace gate, where he instructed the women in making mooncakes every day. The pastry chefs who already knew how to make mooncakes also spontaneously taught the women who came to learn how to make ordinary mooncakes.
When there was not enough firewood, the men in each family would go to the mountains to chop wood, and the half-grown children would also help their mothers.
Some children from poor families probably have barely eaten any cakes and pastries all year round. When they saw the baked yellow mooncakes, they drooled with greed but were unwilling to steal a piece. Instead, they carefully wrapped them in oil paper and placed them on the table beside them.
Jiang Yanyi occasionally saw this and saw that they were as thin as beans. He couldn't bear it and handed some to them.
It is said that children from poor families grow up early, and those children refused to accept it no matter what. A child of four or five years old with only a tuft of hair on his forehead hesitated and wanted to go forward to take it, but was stopped by his sister who was only a few years older than him.
"Xiaobao, don't take it. This is for the soldiers!" The girl with a whip scolded her brother.
Jiang Yanyi said, "It won't be a problem if each of you takes one. We have plenty of flour, so we can continue working."
The girl looked at the mooncake in Jiang Yanyi's hand and swallowed her saliva, but still shook her head stubbornly: "Father and elder brother have both joined the army. If we don't eat it, maybe they will get one."
When the little boy heard his sister say this, he also retracted his hand and said, "Xiaobao doesn't want to eat it. Leave it to Daddy and Big Brother."
Jiang Yanyi looked at their childish faces and dark eyes, and felt a bitter pain in his heart. Swords on the battlefield are merciless, and when the war is over, they don’t know whether they can see their father and elder brother again.
Jiang Yanyi said: "All soldiers can get some."
A hint of hope rose in the girl's eyes: "Really?"
Jiang Yanyi nodded. The girl looked at the mooncake in her hand but still refused to take it. She smiled shyly and said, "Then we'll eat the remaining mooncakes after all the soldiers have been given."
After saying that, he took his younger brother and ran to his mother to help.
There was emotion in Jiang Yanyi's eyes, but there was also something else.
"What are you looking at?"
Jiang Yanyi was startled when someone suddenly spoke behind him.
She turned around and saw that it was Feng Shuo. She couldn't help but glare at him: "When did you come? You didn't even tell me and tried to scare me."
Feng Shuo said with a smile: "I heard you were here as soon as I came back, so I came to see you. You were just too engrossed in watching, why are you blaming me?"
Jiang Yanyi glanced at the peasant woman and her two children working in the shed and sighed, "When the war is over, I don't know how many mothers will have lost their sons, wives will have lost their husbands, and children will have lost their fathers. My heart sinks when I think of this..."
Feng Shuo said: "If they don't go to the battlefield, it's their wives and children who will suffer."
Jiang Yanyi understood all this, which made him feel even more uncomfortable.
She said: "I hope the world will be stable soon."
The sadness on her face was reflected in Feng Shuo's deep eyes, and he only said, "Soon."
Both of them had outstanding looks and temperament, and with Feng Shuo's particularly recognizable armor, many women and children were looking over here.
Jiang Yanyi said, "Let's go into the mansion and talk."
Feng Shuo glanced around and knew that she was shy, so he smiled and said, "No, I just went back to the mansion to get some things, and I came to tell you that more rooms can be arranged later. The thousands of troops detained by Prince Xinyang have been released."
Prince Xinyang originally thought that by capturing Jiang Yanyi, he had captured Feng Shuo's weak spot, so he was quite arrogant when they jointly led troops to resist foreign enemies. But when he learned that Jiang Yanyi had arrived in Hengzhou early in the morning, he was so angry that his face turned green.
If he dared to attack those thousands of soldiers, Feng Shuo had no weaknesses in his hands, so he would be in trouble and had to release thousands of soldiers with hatred.
Jiang Yanyi was delighted to learn that Aunt Guo and the thousands of soldiers who had followed her south had returned safely, and he hurriedly sent people out of the city to pick them up.
At this time, neither of them had expected that this incident would become a reason for King Xinyang to hold a grudge.
When Daxuan and Minghan Kingdom came into direct conflict on the battlefield a few days later, Prince Xinyang, who was supposed to attack Minghan Kingdom from the rear, did not rush to the battlefield at all, but led his troops directly northward, almost annihilating the heavy cavalry that was trying to contain Minghan Kingdom's army on the main battlefield.
"He is indeed a villain who associates with the rats of the Fan family! The next time I see him, I will kill him!"
"That old thief! He withdrew his troops at the last minute, and eight thousand of my soldiers lost their lives in vain!"
Inside the big tent, all the princes gnashed their teeth in hatred when they mentioned King Xinyang.
"He's heading all the way north, it looks like he's heading for the capital!"
"That son of a bitch! We've been through life and death here, and he's going to take the throne?"
"From the moment Fan Wei was beaten like a stray dog, he still protected Fan Wei. I knew he was not a good person!"
"Your Highness, how do you think we should decide this matter? That old villain dares to withdraw his troops to the north at this time. I think he is just like the Fan family and doesn't care about his reputation at all!" A senior prince said to Feng Shuo.
Feng Shuo looked at the sand map in front of him, with only murderous intent in his eyes: "Eight hundred miles away, notify all prefectures and cities urgently not to open the city gates for Prince Xinyang!"
*****
Capital city.
It was almost dusk, and everything in Cangjiao Palace was the same as usual. Jiang Yanxi changed into the palace maid's clothes that the people of the previous dynasty found for her, and she was impersonated by a palace maid who had been knocked unconscious.
Everything was ready and they were just waiting to leave the palace, but at this moment a group of imperial guards surrounded the Cangjiao Palace and did not allow anyone to enter or leave.
"How dare you restrain Concubine Xi's feet?" The senior palace maid disguised as an old official from the previous dynasty glared at the imperial guards viciously.
The head of the imperial guards remained unmoved: "We are here on the orders of His Majesty to protect the safety of Concubine Xi."
The incident happened suddenly, and Jiang Yanxi and the people from the former dynasty around her were inevitably a little confused.
Not long after, the chief eunuch came to summon him, saying that Feng Shiyan wanted to see Jiang Yanxi.
Jiang Yanxi felt even more uneasy. After Feng Shiyan became so sick, he wouldn't let her go even when she took the initiative. What happened today
She changed into her palace dress again and went to Feng Shiyan's bedroom. She felt uneasy all the way, but after she stepped into the palace filled with the smell of medicine, her mood miraculously calmed down.
"Your Majesty, you are looking for me." She sat down beside the dragon couch, her expression the same as before.
There was no servant in the palace except Feng Shiyan.
He closed his eyes, sneered and asked her: "Yan Xi, have you ever lied to me?"
The author has something to say: Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2021-03-02 23:58:27~2021-03-04 00:00:00~
Thanks to the little angel who cast the mine: a great spirit, a thousand miles of joy 1;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 20 bottles of "Cute without taking medicine"; 10 bottles of m. and A Li; 5 bottles of polaris, 36250477 and Ye Zireber; 1 bottle of "Gourmet on the Road to Rolling", "Hua Shao", "Dreaming in vain" and "Don't want to talk";
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!