On the rolling grassland, Guo Shao rode on his vigorous black horse, followed by a large group of cavalrymen, galloping as hard as they could, the heavy hooves of the horses roaring. In the west, the sun was already half a circle hanging on the top of the mountain.
Guo Shao looked far ahead and saw Xiazhou City in sight. He shouted: "Let's go back to the city for dinner."
There was a burst of shouting among the riders.
Guo Shao went out early in the morning with a group of military cavalrymen, and when they came back the sun had already set. He rode fast horses all day, but he still could not see all the land he had just conquered, and could only see a small part of it.
When they arrived at the city gate, it was already the evening hour, but the gate was reserved for them. A general shouted: "Your Majesty is back!" The soldiers on the tower also shouted "Long live the emperor" and looked at Guo Shao. The emperor was still full of energy and spirit, and his energetic aura would also affect the entire army.
The roads in Xiazhou city are not like those in Tokyo. When heavy cavalry gallop past, dust fills the sky.
When they arrived at the central army camp, Guo Shao did not continue to stay with the soldiers, but went straight back to the temporary palace.
He walked into the signing room, took off his helmet and threw it to the eunuch Wang Zhong. At this time, seeing the room full of drawings and files, Guo Shao suddenly felt very tired, and his eyes also showed a hint of fatigue.
Guo Shao sat on the official seat for a while, slapped his palm on a pile of files, and thought: These matters should be handed over to the people in the Privy Council. He only needs to listen to the report.
But before leaving, he had to arrange the key personnel situation and organization. Guo Shao's eyes swept across the map and his eyes immediately saw the Hexi Corridor. The Pingxia area was not only to eliminate a threat, but also a source of logistics for the Western Expedition.
The officials in the signing room who wrote imperial edicts and military orders and passed on messages were silently watching Guo Shao. They paid special attention to where the emperor's eyes were looking.
At this time, perhaps people around him thought that Guo Shao was an energetic and ambitious leader.
But at least now, Guo Shao was indeed a little tired, but he couldn't stop.
With power and responsibility on his shoulders, he had to continue, whether he was a foolish ruler, a tyrant or a wise ruler. Besides, he didn't want to be as miserable as Yelu Jing, nor did he want to be as frustrated as the Later Jin Dynasty.
Then people will pursue profit. Guo Shao once again confirmed that people will never be satisfied and there will be no end. With the divine power of life and death, and artillery, firearms, elite soldiers and population, how can we waste it to get more
The imperial army returned eastward along the Wuding River, and it was already early summer when they entered the Central Plains.
As they came and went, the world changed color. The plain white world when they went to war was now a lush green and red world in Tokyo, which was extremely beautiful. The civil and military officials who stayed behind came out to greet them, and the Imperial Street was very lively. Guo Shao looked at his capital from a corner of the curtain of the carriage, and saw pavilions and towers, all of which were ancient and elegant. Although the court had made some new things, they were mainly used in the military, and the scenery on the market seemed to have not changed much over the years.
It is more prosperous and lively than the turbulent times.
Hundreds of officials and guards surrounded the imperial carriage as it entered the Xuande Gate. The bells and drums on the city walls rang, announcing to the entire Tokyo that the royal army had returned in triumph.
When they arrived at the spacious and monotonous square in front of the tall Jinxiang Palace, the carriage stopped. Guo Shao said in the carriage: "I order all civil and military officials to come to the palace for a celebration banquet at noon tomorrow. Let's all go today."
A civil servant bowed and said: "I obey your order."
Guo Shao called the eunuch Wang Zhong to his side and asked calmly: "Is the Queen Dafu now in the Jinxiang Palace?"
Wang Zhong followed the carriage and had just entered the palace. Unexpectedly, he answered fluently and bowed and said: Your Majesty, the Queen is in Zide Hall.
Guo Shao paused for a moment, thinking that although Jinzhan was crowned as the queen, the reason was the will of heaven, and she seemed unwilling to show her affection in front of others. Guo Shao pondered for a moment, then said: I am a little tired, so I will not go to Jinxiang Palace.
He rode in a carriage into the Xuanyou Gate, inside which was the harem, and the only people accompanying him were the eunuchs and palace maids.
As soon as he arrived at the main gate of Zide Hall, he saw a large group of people waiting there. When Guo Shao got out of the carriage, he saw a group of women bowing and welcoming His Majesty back to the court.
"Get up." Guo Shao walked over and stretched out his hands to help them. Guo Shao's eyes swept over their faces and looked through the crowd, and found that Li Yueji was also standing behind the two queens.
He had just returned from outside, still wearing armor and military uniform, with a sword hanging from his waist. He took off his weapons and helmet and handed them to Wang Zhong, then went into the Zide Hall with everyone else.
Jinzhan controlled her emotions and said, "Your Majesty is currently on a military expedition outside, and we are all worried about you. But when we heard that the Daxu army had won at Wuding River, we felt relieved."
Mrs. Du lowered her head and whispered: Empress Dafu goes to the Sanqing Temple every day to pray for the emperor.
Guo Shao said: It is really difficult for you, but I cannot be careless when it comes to military and national affairs.
He talked to Fu Ermei again, but he only said things that sounded decent in front of others. There were a large group of people here, and although they were all women from the harem, Guo Shao knew that none of them were easy to deal with. Although they looked very submissive at this time, they had a lot of ideas.
Guo Shao had traveled thousands of miles on horseback and in a carriage, and he was not in good spirits at the moment, but since he had encountered such a situation, he had no choice but to deal with it.
He turned his head and looked at Li Yueji. I have been away from Beijing for several months. Is Concubine Xian doing well
Li Yueji was startled for a moment, then pursed her lips and said: Your Majesty, it’s very good.
Guo Shao suddenly sighed, "We are already a family, and I don't want this to happen. Now that the war has subsided, if Lord Li returns to the court, I will consider our relationship as relatives and will definitely let bygones be bygones."
Li Yueji looked gloomy after hearing this.
At this moment, Guo Shao discovered that Du had touched Zhang next to him with her hand. He glanced at her and saw that Zhang looked strange, blushed and lowered her head. Guo Shao did not say anything, pretending not to know.
Fu Jinzhan said: "Your Majesty is tired from the journey, please change your clothes and rest first. Second sister, please take good care of your Majesty."
Good, good. Guo Shao smiled. At this time, he looked at the concubines again. If he could choose, he would not go to Fu Jinzhan. It was not that the second sister was not good. The second sister treated him like a family member. It was not that he did not care about the prince, but he was really tired. In front of his son, he naturally had to act like a father. How could he completely relax and ignore his words and actions
The crowd politely said goodbye and left. Du chased after Zhang and said in a deep voice: Sister, you are really brave!
Zhang looked at her silently.
Mrs. Du said: Didn’t you notice that Queen Dafu looked at you twice without even looking at where you were
Zhang said: I didn't say anything, I didn't do anything, what's wrong
Mrs. Du said: What's the matter? You have been staring at the emperor so much that your soul has left your body. Naturally, you don't know anything else.
Zhang stood there in a daze.
Mrs. Du laughed and said: You don’t know what your sister’s eyes were like just now. It was as if she had never seen a man in her life. Even a blind man could understand what she meant.
Zhang's face suddenly became hot, she felt embarrassed and a little worried:
Mrs. Du glanced at her and breathed a sigh of relief, but it was nothing serious, your nephew is still in Xiazhou doing important things for the court.
Zhang blushed and said anxiously: "Sister, you really misunderstood me. Cao Bin was also a military general. Today, when I saw the emperor wearing armor, I thought of Cao Bin."
She couldn't help but think: Guo Shao looks good in military uniform, and he looks even more tall and heroic. She already knew that the emperor was a military general, but this was the first time she saw him wearing armor.
Mrs. Du curled her lips and said: I thought we sisters were very close, it's so polite of you to say that.
Zhang said seriously: I really didn't lie to you, sister. How could I dare to think of such a shameless thing? What's your status? It would be great if I could have a place to stand in the palace.
Mrs. Du whispered: What's your status? In the Great Xu Dynasty, isn't she just a Shang Gong
Zhang said calmly: "That's true, but this dynasty has a close relationship with the previous dynasty. How can the government invite such criticism and trouble?"
After hearing this, Mrs. Du sighed and said: Sister, you are right.
Zhang remained silent. The two walked together for a while and then separated. Zhang remained in the Sanqing Hall.
As soon as she entered the temple, she heard the sound of wooden fish and bells. Those sounds were supposed to make people peaceful and calm, but Zhang felt very irritated and even more uneasy.
She was stunned on the mat for a while, then turned around and saw the unpainted table in front of the wooden window. It seemed as if she saw a young man sitting there with a chess piece in his hand. She raised her head slightly and saw the wooden frame again, and a scene suddenly appeared in front of her: a can of scented oil fell and poured all over her.
When Zhang thought of this, her face felt hot and she felt very nervous.
The next day was the Jinxiang Palace banquet. Zhang and the others were now Empress Fu's people, and things were different now. If there was such a banquet, she would also follow the Empress to the banquet.
Zhang got up before dawn.
The Sanqing Hall is a Taoist place for meditation and prayer in the imperial palace. The furnishings in the house are simple and plain. But in this room with no color in the furniture, Zhang took out a very complete set of rouge and powder from the cabinet. She dressed up carefully in front of the bronze mirror.
Under the oil lamp, the light was dim, but the face in the bronze mirror was beautiful with a hint of charm. Zhang was only a court lady now, so she couldn't wear anything casually, but even an ordinary moon-white silk skirt could look charming. She only needed to pay attention to the cutting of the material and the small embellishments.
Zhang carefully looked at the beauty in the bronze mirror.
In this world, there are few women who don't think they are beautiful. Everyone wants to be admired and loved by others. Moreover, these beauties who are really beautiful, who would be willing to be a supporting role every day
But Zhang still sighed deeply. She didn't think she was uglier than Queen Dafu, but the relationship between Queen Dafu and Guo Shao was not something she could compare to. Even so, people had never expected Queen Dafu to return to the palace.
Zhang sometimes sighed, sometimes felt depressed, and sat in front of the dressing table, looking at herself in pity.