Half a month later, Cao Bin and Yang Ye completed the establishment of the Qianying Military Headquarters and the gathering of the imperial guards, and they were about to leave Beijing.
At this time, the wind was full of coolness, and autumn had quietly arrived without anyone noticing. Guo Shao saw them off at Xuande Gate in the imperial city and gave them wine to drink before they left. After the two men bid farewell to the emperor, they would go in two different directions: Yang Ye to the west and Cao Bin to the south.
Guo Shao stood on the top of the city wall, watching the war horses going away from the city. He was used to the regular life in the temple and the harem every day, and suddenly he envied their long journey.
He stood on the top of the city wall for a long time, until the generals on the Imperial Street disappeared from his sight.
Guo Shao was no longer a willful person, and he would not ignore the ministers' advice and go out of the capital to do some incognito visits. Although the safety risks were small, Guo Shao had truly experienced what serious consequences would come from the danger to his life. The aftermath of the last poisoning storm was still not far away.
Moreover, in his opinion, the emperor's doing such things was just for fun, and basically had no real effect. Under the rule of the Daxu Dynasty, there were more than 400 states, thousands of counties, and countless common people. He had to make decisions for the people, and he could do a few things personally that were truly meaningful, but they were means at the central level and at the general level.
This is what it means to do one's job well.
Guo Shao returned to Jinxiang Hall and continued what he did every day.
Until he returned to the Wansui Palace at twilight hour, Guo Shao wondered who would sleep with him tonight. In this palace, delicacies from land and sea are no longer rare, and the greatest pleasure is beauty, which is the most abundant thing in the palace. If it weren't for the extravagance and debauchery, I'm afraid the imperial city would be a cage for the emperor.
At this time, the eunuch Wang Zhong came in to report: "Your Majesty, Concubine Zhou has caught a cold, but it happened to be her turn tonight. Otherwise, I will summon the concubine to sleep with you again."
No, Guo Shao said without hesitation.
He paused and said: Prepare the car, I will go to Ehuang Palace to check on her condition.
Wang Zhong immediately bowed and said: I obey your order.
When he arrived at Zhou Xian's palace, only eunuchs and palace maids came out to greet him. Guo Shao ignored them and went straight into Zhou Xian's bedroom. There were two palace maids kneeling in the room. Zhou Xian was lying on the bed and struggling to sit up. Lu Lan, who was sitting next to him, also stood up and bowed.
I am unable to perform the ceremony for Your Majesty. Zhou Xian's face was pale, and a strand of messy hair was stuck to his forehead.
Guo Shao strode forward, held her shoulders and said: You just need to take good care of your health.
At this time Lu Lan said: Your Majesty, the cold may infect others, so it is not advisable to get too close at this time.
When Zhou Xian heard this, a subtle expression flashed across his face, and he immediately said: "Lu Wanyi is an excellent doctor. It is better for her to come and treat me personally. The official is busy with state affairs. If I catch a cold, it is not my fault."
Guo Shao turned around skillfully and casually and asked: Is Ehuang's illness serious
Lu Lan said: "With the changing seasons, the weather is hot and cold, and it is easy to catch a cold. Zhou Zhaoyi just caught a cold occasionally. There are people in the palace to take care of her. She only needs to take medicine and recuperate for ten days, and she will recover naturally. Your Majesty, don't worry too much."
That's good, that's good. Guo Shaodao, looking at Lu Lan's face again, said, "Thank you, Madam Lu."
Lu Lan's face turned a little red, and she whispered: I am already a member of the palace, what is there for Your Majesty to thank me for
Guo Shao then remembered that the address had not been changed, and calling her "niangzi" was equivalent to "Ms.", which was a bit awkward. He had weighed the pros and cons before and conferred titles on some women around him, and Lu Lan was one of them, but even though she had the title, she had never slept with him.
That's right. Guo Shao smiled to cover up his slip of the tongue.
Zhou Xian was lying there, but Guo Shao and Lu Lan chatted with each other for several minutes as if no one was around, probably because they had known each other for a long time.
Zhou Xian said: His Majesty is still so kind to us. He rushes to see me in person when I have a minor illness.
Only then did Guo Shao turn around and look at her.
Zhou Xian said again: "I have something to discuss with you, and I wanted to wait until I recovered from my illness before I talked to you. Today, your Majesty is here, so I will take this opportunity to talk to you." After saying that, she glanced at Lu Lan.
Guo Shao said kindly: Lu Wanyi, go and rest for a while, I will take care of Zhou Zhaoyi.
Lu Lan knelt down and bowed, then turned and walked out. The two palace maids in the room also left tactfully.
Guo Shao pulled the waist-shaped stool next to the bed over, sat in front of the bed, and waited for Zhou Xian to speak.
Zhou Xian was silent for a long time before she spoke: "I cannot serve Your Majesty today, so let Zhou Ermei take my place."
Guo Shao hurriedly said: There is no need to do this.
Zhou Xian pursed his lips and said: Zhou Ermei is not young anymore. If she can't serve His Majesty, what should she do
Guo Shao fell silent.
The two sisters of the Zhou family were relatives of the Southern Tang emperor, and they were still captives of Guo Shao. However, Guo Shao did not treat them as captives because of their friendship. After Guo Shao destroyed the country, he openly occupied Zhou Xian, and her sister Zhou Jiamin was also raised in the palace. If Zhou Jiamin left the palace again, it would not be appropriate in all aspects. Guo Shao was reluctant to give away the beautiful woman he had captured.
What surprised him was that it was Zhou Xian who took the initiative to bring up this matter. In Guo Shao's memory, the two sisters were originally jealous of each other because of competing for favor, and Zhou Xian was so angry that she died during her illness.
On second thought, their current situation is different from that of the Southern Tang court. In the Southern Tang, Zhou Xian was the queen and had an equal relationship with the emperor; if someone else, even her own sister, came to compete, Zhou Xian would lose a lot of favor.
But now, Zhou Xian can't compete with her sister, because there are other concubines whose status is not lower than hers. If Zhou Er's sister is favored, Zhou Xian may not feel good, but at least she is still a family member and will not let Zhou Xian lose anything.
The right way is that the situations are different and cannot be compared.
When Guo Shao thought of this, he suddenly understood.
Zhou Xian said: "Your Majesty, please do not leave tonight. Go to the back room to eat and change clothes. I will arrange this matter."
Guo Shao agreed, and after leaving Zhou Xian's bedroom, he walked under the corridor outside the door and suddenly saw the pavilion where he and Zhou Ermei met last time. For a moment, he was a little excited. After being in the harem for a long time, such anticipation was very rare.
A young soul that changed the road of destiny, that youthful and energetic life is gradually approaching. Guo Shao is looking forward to not only beauty, but also that encounter.
After nightfall, Guo Shao was waiting for Zhou Jiamin in a bedroom with mixed feelings.
The weather is very good tonight. Outside the translucent gauze window, the moon and sparse stars are hazy; the cold moonlight shines through the gauze window, painting a warm red color.
Just as Guo Shao was pacing in front of the window, admiring the night and thinking, the door creaked open, Guo Shao looked back and saw Zhou Jiamin walking into the room.
"Greetings, Your Majesty" Zhou Jiamin's voice trembled with nervousness, and she half-knelt there. She was wearing a light red silk skirt as thin as a cicada's wing, and her hair was tied up.
Guo Shao strode over and helped her up. When Zhou Jiamin stood up, her height was just as high as Guo Shao's shoulders, which made her look even more petite and tender. She was indeed a rare beauty, with jade-white skin like satin that seemed to melt in the moonlight, and a watery aura between her beautiful eyebrows that was pleasing to the eye, as if she was out of this world.
Although Guo Shao had been fighting in the wind and sun for many years, his appearance and skin were normal. But when he stood in front of Zhou Jiamin, his face and hands looked very rough, as if the two of them were not of the same race at all.
Zhou Jiamin stood there like a root, her face flushed and unable to move, her body stiff. After being helped up, she even forgot to thank her and said in a stiff tone: My sister asked me to come
Guo Shao said casually: Do you know what you are here for
Zhou Jiamin lowered his head and said nothing, and then he didn't say another word.
Guo Shao then realized that he had asked the wrong question.
He paused for a long moment, and in order to reduce the awkward silence, he said in a gentle tone: The moonlight is nice tonight.
Zhou Jiamin remained silent.
For a moment, Guo Shao felt that the scene of meeting tonight was completely beyond his imagination. He recalled that day when they met in the pavilion in the rain, and they talked and got along very well. But somehow, it became like this now. The girl was just very nervous and panicked. Or maybe the girl didn't regard Guo Shao as a lover at all, but just an older brother or elder.
Both are very likely. According to Guo Shao's experience, the most important thing for middle school girls when they first fall in love is good looks. Guo Shao is a tall, strong and sturdy man with an ordinary face and an old age. Even if he has many advantages, he may not be liked by ignorant girls.
Gradually, Guo Shao felt a little disappointed, and found that he and a teenage girl from ancient times, perhaps they had nothing in common. Since moving into the palace, facing thousands of women vying for his favor, he unconsciously became less and less patient with women.
Guo Shao put aside the unrealistic things he had imagined, but his tone was still habitually gentle. He said casually: "Come with me to look at the moon." After that, he tentatively reached out and pulled her wrist.
Seeing that Zhou Jiamin did not resist, he held her wrist and led her to the window. Guo Shao's rough big palm was very inconsistent with Zhou Jiamin's hand. The size difference was too big. It seemed that Guo Shao could lift her whole body with just a little force. However, he did not use much force, but held it very gently, carefully not to hurt her.
The two stood in front of the window admiring the moon, completely speechless. Zhou Jiamin should be very good at poetry, but Guo Shao looked like he had nothing to do with literature.
Guo Shao was thinking about whether there was an ancient poem praising the moonlight that he could take out to suit the occasion, but his mind was suddenly confused and he couldn't think of anything. If you don't think about something for a long time, it's easy to get stuck when you suddenly think about it.
So he simply went straight to the topic of the night, letting go of Zhou Jiamin's wrist with a very casual movement and placing his palm on her shoulder. It was simply unbearable to look at a rough hand with bulging veins on that delicate and beautiful shoulder.
Guo Shao moved his fingers slowly, watching her reaction, very carefully. It was really a subconscious mentality, Guo Shao didn't want to force Zhou Ermei to be humiliated at all.
At this moment, Zhou Jiamin's body moved slightly. Guo Shao quickly took his hand away.
Unexpectedly, she suddenly threw herself into Guo Shao's arms and pressed her face against his big pectoral muscles. Guo Shao was stunned, very surprised.
There was no sound around, and no one was talking. Zhou Jiamin kept rubbing her face and nose in Guo Shao's arms, sniffing his scent, and her body was trembling slightly.
In the silent moment, Guo Shao had no idea what was going on. After a moment, he put his arms around her and stayed quietly in the hazy moonlight.