Chapter 40 A restless mind; soft and delicate grapes, gently…
On the way back to Weiyang Palace, the numbers continued to jump, and Tian Tong was stuck, so Ying Xi was not disturbed by Tian Tong.
Inside the carriage, Ying Xi leisurely looked out.
This is his West Market in Chang'an. The people on the street are either busy or leisurely, and he can tell they are very calm.
For Ying Xi, who had received imperial education since childhood, the scene before him was an absolute affirmation of his imperial abilities, and his sense of self-worth continued to rise.
As for the emperor's unfulfilled little desires: for example, he wanted to go down and browse the bookstores; and he also wanted to taste all the food sold at the West Market stalls, regardless of whether it was poisonous...
—It is inappropriate to have foreign officials present.
Ying Xi suddenly looked at Xie Qianli, who was driving the carriage, because of the term "foreign official," and felt a sharp pain in her heart.
When he was a child, also in the West Market, Xie Qianli sneaked him out of Fanglan Palace. Back then, Xie Qianli wasn't as upright as he is now; he would unintentionally exude the innocence of youth.
He would enthusiastically tell himself what tastes good, what tastes bad, what's fun, and what entertainment to avoid...
In the bustling city at that time, he hit the target with all twenty arrows in the pitch-pot game, easily winning the cheers of the entire street, without caring about attracting attention.
However, with red sleeves waving all around on horseback, he quickly led her away, forcing himself to remain calm, as if afraid that the two of them would be tainted by the world of prostitution.
Koma is lively yet well-mannered, and kind and upright.
Ying Xi knew that he had been using and deceiving Xie Qianli all along, but he had never treated Xie Qianli as an outsider. He had even treated him no less than he had treated his younger brother, Ying Dang.
What about the future?
Ying Xi was unaware of this.
Perhaps it's because the throne is too high and lonely, and even a Duke cannot easily sit on it.
The conflict between monarchical power and military power alone was enough to end their tragic lives.
In this life, will we ultimately kill him, cripple him, exile him, or live in peace for several years? Who knows what the future holds?
The silver armor came into Ying Xi's view.
The bright light shone into his heart, seemingly tangible, yet cold and heavy.
Xie Qianli and Ying Xi parted ways at the entrance of Weiyang Palace.
Upon entering the hall and returning to the study, the study was spotless. The palace servants had thoroughly cleaned the place, and the scent of medicine had long since dissipated, leaving no trace of anyone having ever been there.
Yingxi went out to observe the execution in the morning, so she needs to take some time in the afternoon to handle government affairs.
The memorials in the study had already been arranged in order of importance and urgency, but no one was there. The Right Chancellor left a note.
Yingxi picked it up; the paper was covered with elegant ink characters.
Your subject, Su Xueyi, bows respectfully:
Bandits have been causing disturbances in Yongzhou and several northern prefectures, and the governors have all submitted reports, earnestly requesting Your Majesty to decide whether to send troops. The Southern Barbarian King has sent an envoy to the capital; the protocol for his reception is yet to be determined.
Everything that was supposed to come has come.
Everything was proceeding as Ying Xi had predicted, and it seemed to be a warning to him that if he did not take further action, his country would be destroyed and his clan exterminated, repeating the same mistakes.
His Weiyang Palace, his Chang'an City, and even the entire land of China.
His younger siblings, civil and military officials, and everyone else will be trampled underfoot and burned to ashes in the flames, with no one surviving!
Ying Xi dipped his vermilion brush in ink and wrote: "I intend to establish a delegation to offer amnesty and pacify the northern border, and to quell the banditry. My dear minister is fluent in the barbarian language and may receive the barbarian king's envoy on my behalf."
After the instructions were completed, Yu Jing was instructed to take the jade mirror to the Ministry of Personnel.
Yu Jing went away. Not long after, he returned with the Prime Minister's message: "Your Majesty, the Right Prime Minister asks you about the specific procedures for the pacification mission, so that he can assign people to share the official duties of the officials going abroad."
"Also..." Yu Jing paused, then hesitated, "Prime Minister Su said that his sister is ill and plans to take a few days off, so he will be unable to entertain the barbarian envoy on behalf of His Majesty."
Misfortune never comes singly. Ying Xi thought.
Su Yin is in poor health and has lower than average intelligence. She is Su Xueyi's darling, and Ying Xi knows this.
However, Su Yin was chronically ill.
If she fell seriously ill, Su Xueyi would not dare to ask for leave. Instead, she would try her best to curry favor with the doctor, beg for rare and precious medicines, and ask Physician Liu to come to the mansion for a consultation.
So it's not that my sister is sick at all, it's that Su Xueyi's old problem has flared up again!
He was tamed for a while, his arrogance subsided, and he settled down to work peacefully in the imperial court.
However, knowing that many officials had been executed in the palace, the palace could not do without him when it came to personnel.
Su Xueyi was smug, transforming back into the peacock with its tail feathers spread wide, always failing at crucial moments—something he always enjoyed doing.
Ying Xi remained calm, secretly grinding his teeth – this was one of the difficulties of being an emperor.
Even as an emperor, one cannot guarantee that everything will go as one wishes.
The emperor could not lose face, so he had to endure it.
Ying Xi calmly said, "Then let him rest until Su Yin recovers before returning. The Imperial Tutor is also fluent in the barbarian language and has a more composed personality than him. Issue an order for the Imperial Tutor to receive the barbarian king's envoy."
"As Your Majesty commands, this servant takes his leave."
I spent the whole afternoon busy and bustling around.
Everything was in a frantic rush, but nothing good came of it!
Yingxi put down the vermilion brush and took out a storybook from the drawer to read.
The storybooks are even more pedantic and tasteless. The one I'm reading is about "Emperor Xuanzong of Tang's Neglect of Governance and Misrule of the Country," which is a moralistic tale.
"..." Emperor Xuanzong of Tang also had Consort Yang by his side!
I, a dignified emperor, have not even a single concubine in my palace. The three thousand beauties were all added to the quota during my adoptive father's generation. Why should I be the one to lose my country and my life?!
The more Ying Xi looked, the angrier she became.
But given his temperament, extreme anger often leads to sullenness.
He was like a jade statue, quiet and melancholic, with an aura of unapproachability that inspired awe.
Therefore, Tian Tong didn't speak until Ying Xi had completely finished her work and was preparing to go to bed.
"Your Majesty, your reward application has been received: fifty legendary lucky bags (trial packs)."
"The online store is now open, offering a wide variety of products. Would Your Majesty like to take a look?"
***
Nighttime, the British Duke's Mansion.
"The night is deep and quiet, the bright moon is high, and no one comes to the small pavilion. My wife, please don't sleep tonight. I have something to say in a low voice: 'Open half a window, no need to knock lightly. When I come, I will shake the flowering tree.' Remember this, and don't forget it. When the shadow moves, I will come."
"The shadow moves, brother has arrived!"
The singing voice was rough and loud.
As a bachelor in his early twenties who hadn't yet been offered marriage, Lian Qing hummed a little tune, and the words "sister" and "wife" in the lyrics became his precious spiritual support.
The spiritual pillar may be beautiful, but its singing is not as pleasant as a dog's bark.
The black falcon scratched and clawed at him to shut him up.
Lian Qing was once again punished by Master Falcon, and entered the Duke's study in a disheveled state.
“General, during the days you were recuperating, the Dragon Martial Army continued its training as usual and is ready to be deployed at any time.”
The lampstand on Xie Qianli's table was not made of gold or silver.
The brass lampstand held up the faint candlelight, casting a rich, golden-red hue over Xie Qianli's tall and imposing figure: "Understood."
The Duke's mansion actually bought grapes.
These off-season grapes must be so expensive!!!
Lian Qing was shocked. He immediately thought that the general was going to die, and that the general was also thinking of doing something rash. So he immediately stopped him.
"General, the pay has been issued as usual recently. I've been saving money by eating less and drinking less, and I still have three or four taels left in my pocket."
"It's better to be alive, please accept this!"
Lian Qing was spouting nonsense across from him, leaving Xie Qianli speechless for a moment.
It's not that he doesn't have money; he's just used to being frugal.
Besides, we eat grapes with our mouths, not our eyes, so why make it so bright?
Tonight, Xie Qianli's simple and unpretentious view on eating grapes made him focus more on his taste buds and savor the flavor of grapes.
They were sour, and eating too many made your teeth feel a bit astringent. But he still ate a lot of them.
He didn't realize that what he wanted to reminisce about wasn't actually the sour taste of grapes.
He prefers the refreshing, cool juice that flows out when the grapes are peeled.
The soft, delicate grapes gently pressed against my lips, slowly moving towards my teeth.
Did he touch that person's fingertips?
suddenly.
Xie Qianli's breathing became erratic in the lamplight.
The thought that was triggered carried a sense of taboo!
Just as it was sprouting like a bamboo shoot in spring, it was ruthlessly nipped in the bud by Xie Qianli!
Although it was only mid-spring, he felt an indescribable stuffiness and quickly drank a cup of cool tea.
I ate the iced grapes rather haphazardly.
Xie Qianli barely managed to maintain his composure, pulled out a scroll, unfolded the map, and analyzed with Lian Qing that this time they should order military supplies.
"The mountain roads are difficult to travel, so there's no need to bring a siege vehicle."
"The lightly armored troops are better at raids than the heavily armored troops. The ratio is 3:7. The most intelligent and capable soldiers are selected, and they also need to represent the image of the court. Soldiers pay some attention to their appearance."
"When troops infiltrate the dense forest, they need to be camouflaged and concealed, so relevant supplies should be prepared in advance."
"In addition, we will send out our scouts tonight to investigate the terrain and troop deployment of the various bandit strongholds."
He gave detailed instructions on many aspects of the plan.
However, both he and Lian Qing knew that no matter how fierce these bandits were, they could not possibly stand against the entire country with just one mountain stronghold.
Lian Qing said, "General, there's really nothing to fight. The Longwu Army will cooperate with the pacification delegation, while we will be responsible for deterring the mountain bandits and emboldening the pacification envoy."
"Mm." Xie Qianli nodded.
Lian Qing, relying on his close relationship with him, and especially since it was in private, clapped his hands and laughed boldly, saying, "Seeing how cautious you are, I thought His Majesty was going to personally lead the expedition."
"..."
When the deputy general mentioned the emperor, Xie Qianli was momentarily lost in thought again.
He seemed out of sorts tonight, and inexplicably glanced at the bowl of grapes. Each grape resembled a jade bead, stirring up a flood of questions in Xie Qianli's mind.
He felt that the emperor was contradictory.
At first, Ying Xi told him to get lost, appearing cold and indifferent.
Why did you send him so many grapes later?
Just because you like to eat it? Or did you mispronounce "sweet"?
That doesn't mean she has to give herself a whole warehouse of fruit; Yingxi isn't the type to waste things.
After much thought, Xie Qianli could only try his best to explain.
—That means Ying Xi was really angry with himself. The full storehouse of grapes was the emperor's test and punishment.
He deliberately gave himself an inexhaustible supply of grapes, so that he could neither waste the imperial gift nor finish eating them, nor sell them.
right.
Xie Qianli recalled that back when Ying Xi was still a young girl, he had a habit of giving himself difficult problems.
Acrostic poems, couplets with embedded characters, and riddles.
The riddle whose answer was "shadow" had been forgotten over the long years, but in an instant, Xie Qianli carefully picked it up again.
He repeated in a low voice:
"Those who have intentions do not possess you, while those who have no intentions are always with me."
We met under the bright red sun, but found ourselves speechless.
Recalling the fragmented memories of Fanglan Palace, Xie Qianli felt restless, his strangeness only intensifying.
Beautiful and skilled at deception, Ying Xi loves playing word games.
The emperor must want to see himself struggling to solve the problem after much thought, scratching his head and looking helpless.
This is indeed something His Majesty would do...
Xie Qianli shook his head slightly in the candlelight.
That young and handsome face suddenly broke into a smile that even he himself didn't notice, clear and pure, with a touch of infatuation.
Lian Qing was stunned by the Duke of England's smile.
Lian Qing was certain that they were about to carry out a mission to recruit the enemy into the government, and not to do anything else.
The general's behavior was so unusual that he had to trace the origins of this anomaly.
Grape!
Who gave me these grapes? Did they get poisoned?
Lian Qing couldn't help but want to test the poison on himself, and with a sense of righteousness, he searched for an antidote: "Please allow me to try it."
Just as his large hand reached towards the rim of the bowl, Xie Qianli gently patted it aside.
The Duke of England frowned: "Sour."
Lian Qing was even more dumbfounded: If it's sour, why did you eat so much? ???
In terms of romance and love affairs alone, Lian Qing was more enlightened than Xie Qianli, and those little songs sung by the young men and women were not in vain.
Lian went straight to the point: "It was a gift from the young lady!"
Xie Qianli's face was cold, and the room seemed frozen: "How dare you! This is a gift from the Emperor."
Lian Qing knelt down with a thud towards Weiyang Palace: "Your Majesty, please forgive me!"
But Lian Qing was even more confused, and knelt down to ask, "General, why did the Emperor send you raisins?"
To say that sending grapes was to spite him, punish him, or make things difficult for him... to save face for Ying Xi, these things are not for outsiders to know.
Xie Qianli did not say it directly.
However, he didn't need to think for long before he figured out how to deal with Ying Xi's question and the overflowing grapes.
Xie Qianli said clearly: "I will bestow the fruit to make wine."
"Huh?" Lian Qing raised an eyebrow and looked up.
The Duke of England was, after all, one of the most outstanding members of his generation in the royal palace. He had received a proper education and could properly fool Lian Qing, an illiterate man.
"'Fine wine in a luminous cup, the pipa urges us to drink on horseback,' meaning that we should set off for war as soon as possible."
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