Chapter 123
Xie Zheng did not seem to intend to let Tang Peiyi and the others know that the descendants of Prince Chengde were still alive.
To prevent the news from leaking out, Yu Qianqian and her son were temporarily hidden in a villa on the outskirts of the city. Changning heard that Baoer and the others were in Jizhou, and insisted on going to see Baoer. Fan Changyu thought it would be good for the two children to be together and have a playmate, so after informing Xie Zheng, he took Changning to the villa.
When the two children met again, to Fan Changyu's surprise, they did not start playing together immediately. Instead, they had red eyes and did not speak a word.
Fan Changyu teased Changning: "Didn't you say you wanted to come see Baoer? Why didn't you say anything after seeing her?"
Chang Ning grabbed a piece of her clothes, pursed his lips and looked at Yu Baoer who was also standing next to Yu Qianqian: "I didn't lie to you, I said I would let my sister and brother-in-law save you, right?"
Fan Changyu and Yu Qianqian were both laughing, only Yu Baoer nodded gently towards Changning: "I know."
Yu Qianqian said to Fan Changyu: "We haven't seen the children for a long time, and they look unfamiliar. Let them play by themselves for a while, and they will become familiar with each other soon."
She invited Fan Changyu to come in and sit down, leaving Changning and Baoer playing outside.
The yard is very big and there are guards outside, so nothing can happen.
Changning hung his head and tapped the ground with the butt of his shoe, not looking very happy.
It wasn't because of anything else, but because Yu Baoer, who was originally the same height as her, had grown half a head taller than her after not seeing her for half a year.
She shook a bunch of small things in her hands and stuffed them all at Yu Baoer, saying, "These are the butterflies and katydids that Uncle Zhao made for me. They're all for you."
Yu Baoer didn't know what had upset her, so she asked, "After that person took you away, he didn't beat you, did he?"
Talking about being taken to the battlefield with Yuan Qing, Chang Ning finally got excited. He sat on a stone pier, gesticulating and saying, "He was so fierce. He put me on a horse that was taller than me and took me to run in the mountains in the dark night. Many people died. The ghosts in the mountains were crying in the wind..."
Yu Baoer's face was not looking good: "He took you to the battlefield?"
Chang Ning finally remembered that the place where the group of people fought was called a battlefield, and nodded quickly: "Fortunately, my brother-in-law came to save me. That bad guy couldn't beat my brother-in-law, so he threw me into the sky and stabbed me with his bowl-sized gun. My brother-in-law beat him back with a weapon thicker than a pillar!"
As she spoke, she opened her arms and measured how thick it was.
Yu Baoer imagined Xie Zheng on horseback holding a large pillar as a weapon, frowned, and then said as she wished: "Your brother-in-law is really amazing."
Chang Ning quickly puffed out her chest proudly: "My elder sister is the best, and my brother-in-law is the second best. Don't be afraid in the future. If bad guys come again, I will protect you! My elder sister is a general now, and she is in charge of many people! Uncle Xiaowu, Uncle Xiaoqi, and Uncle Xiaoqin..."
While Fan Changyu and Yu Qianqian were talking in the room, he glanced outside and saw two children sitting on the steps, fiddling with a bunch of gadgets and mumbling something to each other.
Yu Qianqian smiled and said, "Bao'er used to be very friendly, but I don't know what he went through during the time he was locked up in Prince Changxin's mansion. When I saw him again, he didn't like to smile or talk anymore. I heard that I found him a playmate, but he ignored me. I feel relieved to see that he can play with Ning Niang again."
Fan Changyu said: "Maybe he was frightened."
Yu Qianqian said: "I have nothing else to ask for in this life. The only person I care about is Bao Er."
Fan Changyu heard that she was worried about Yu Baoer's future situation, so he comforted her, "Don't be afraid, Baoer is not a remnant of the thieves now. He is the descendant of Prince Chengde. No one dares to do anything to Baoer."
Yu Qianqian smiled bitterly and said, "Can that person in the palace accommodate the descendants of Prince Chengde?"
This question stumped Fan Changyu.
The Li family has now teamed up with Qi Min and wants the young emperor to abdicate. The young emperor probably regards the descendants of Prince Chengde as a thorn in his side.
Fan Changyu was silent for a moment, then said, "I will do my best to protect you."
Fan Changyu did not have a good impression of the emperor in the palace. The rebellion in the past had not yet been quelled, and in order to allow Xie Zheng to marry the eldest princess with peace of mind, the emperor did not hesitate to kill himself, a military general.
Loyalty or not doesn't seem to matter; as long as they are in the way, they should be removed.
Qi Min was a man who, in order to overthrow Wei Yan, worked with the Li family to come up with a vicious plan that treated the lives of thousands of soldiers as a joke. Fan Changyu also didn't think that he would be a good emperor if he came to power.
Perhaps it was because he had been a commoner who only cared about his own food and clothing for the past ten years. Although Fan Changyu was in awe of the imperial power, he was not blindly loyal to it.
After returning home that day, she made a special trip to look for Xie Zheng. Xie Zheng was dealing with the documents piled up on his desk, and she sat beside him in a daze.
Xie Zheng asked her, "Are you worried about something?"
Fan Changyu asked: "What do you think if the emperor wants to kill Baoer?"
Xie Zheng sneered: "He can hardly protect himself now."
He showed Fan Changyu a letter sent from the capital.
These official documents were written in very literal terms. Fan Changyu had a hard time reading them. After finally understanding their meaning, she widened her eyes and asked, "Does the Li family want Qi Min to officially appear in the court?"
What was written in the letter was nothing else but that officials of the Qintianjian observed the stars at night and found that the Emperor Star was moving unusually.
Several elderly officials in the court said that they had dreamed of the late emperor at night. The late emperor burst into tears and said that he could not bear to see the prince of Chengde end up living among the people.
Now the whole capital is spreading the rumor that the emperor's eldest grandson is not dead, and also saying that the severe drought in recent years is because the emperor is unworthy of his position.
The people had long been dissatisfied with Wei Yan's hollowing out of imperial power, and the young emperor had always left the impression of being cowardly and incompetent to the ministers and the world. Now they had an outlet for venting their anger, and the people were clamoring that the descendants of Prince Chengde should succeed to the throne as the orthodox choice.
The emperor used to rely on the Li family to suppress Wei Yan, but now the Li family has turned away from him, and the little power he holds is too powerful to be used against anyone.
Xie Zheng said with certainty: "Wei Yan is also setting up a trap. When the Li family's plan becomes clear, it will be time for Wei Yan to close the net."
-
Capital city, imperial palace.
On the steps below the dragon desk in Yu's study, memorials had already been scattered all over the floor, and all the cups and utensils that could be smashed had also been smashed.
"Rebellion! Everyone is going to rebel!"
With nothing else to throw at him, Emperor Qi Sheng was so angry that he overturned the dragon table to the ground. The wide dragon robe dragged on the ground, causing him to accidentally step on it and fall, with his forehead bleeding on the steps.
Today's rage formed a sharp contrast with his ecstasy when the Li family's initial memorial impeaching Wei Yan came up.
It turns out that the Li family started to overthrow Wei Yan not because of his intention, but because they had harbored ulterior motives long ago!
The eunuch who was serving beside him was terrified and stepped forward to help him: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"
Qi Sheng waved away the eunuch who came forward to support him, pointed at the eunuch with a sinister look and said: "I know that you have never regarded me as a real emperor, I know it all..."
He looked so ferocious as if he wanted to eat someone.
The eunuch didn't care about the cuts on his body caused by the broken porcelain on the ground when he fell, and he knelt down to express his loyalty: "Your Majesty, the heaven and earth can witness my loyalty to you!"
Qi Sheng ignored him and just muttered to himself: "He, Xie Zheng, dared to refuse my order. The Li family will have to find another puppet to replace me..."
As he spoke, his face suddenly became fierce and he said hysterically: "I am the true Dragon Emperor! No one else can think of sitting on the dragon throne except me!"
The eunuch stared at Qi Sheng's disobedient expression, and for a moment he even suspected that Qi Sheng had gone crazy.
But Qi Sheng dragged the dragon robe with half of its sleeves off and walked back and forth in Yu's study. He didn't care that the golden crown on his head was crooked. He just muttered: "There is still a way... There is still a way..."
The eunuch was terrified as he looked at his crazy appearance. Thinking of the comments in the court and among the people, he tried to leave Yu's study without making a sound. He was almost at the door when Qi Sheng, who was walking back and forth in the hall, noticed him and tilted his head to look at him: "Where are you going?"
The eunuch broke out in a cold sweat. After all, he had served the emperor for so many years that he could speak without stuttering: "I...I see that your majesty is upset, so I want to go and make you a pot of tea."
"Really?" Qi Sheng seemed unconvinced. He took the Longquan sword from the sword rack beside him and walked directly towards the old eunuch on the steps, dragging the tip of the sword.
The old eunuch was so frightened that her soul was about to fly out of her body. Her legs were so weak that she could not even walk. She lay limp on the ground and begged for mercy, "I really want to make tea for Your Majesty..."
Qi Sheng looked at him and smiled: "Just go make tea, why are you shaking like this?"
The sharp tip of the sword pierced into the eunuch's leg, and the old eunuch screamed immediately. Qi Sheng felt that the malice that was roaring in his heart found an outlet in the scream, and every pore in his body suddenly felt relaxed.
He was in a very good mood and stabbed the old eunuch with his sword again. Seeing the blood dyeing his bright yellow dragon robe red, he smiled happily: "What a beautiful color, no wonder Xie Zheng's eight hundred personal cavalry are called the Blood Robe Cavalry."
The old lady prisoner was trembling with pain all over her body. She tried to crawl out using her hands and feet, but Qi Sheng behind her seemed to have discovered a new toy. He used the Longquan sword in his hand as if it were a knife. He held the hilt of the sword with both hands and chopped the old lady prisoner with all his anger, like cutting melons or chopping wood.
The old eunuch began by expressing her loyalty and begging for mercy, but later on she could not even utter a word to ask for mercy or intercession.
The floor tiles of the main hall were covered with blood foam and minced meat.
Qi Sheng chopped until his hands were numb, then stopped. He looked at the corpse that was reduced to a pile of rotten flesh, threw away the sword, called the eunuch to come in and clean up, and sat back on the dragon chair to catch his breath.
When the young eunuchs who came into the hall saw the pile of flesh and blood in the center of the hall, their faces turned pale and they vomited continuously.
Qi Sheng looked at their ferocious appearance and seemed to find it extremely amusing. He finally laughed out loud with satisfaction: "Eunuch Gao has ulterior motives towards me, and he deserves death! If anyone else has ulterior motives towards me, this will be his fate!"
A group of young eunuchs knelt on the ground with pale faces to show their loyalty.
Qi Sheng watched this scene with great satisfaction, and felt relaxed all over. This was the taste of power he longed for!
One day, the Li family and the Xie family will also kneel before him and wag their tails to beg for mercy!
But before that, he still has to continue to be patient for a while.
After venting his anger, Qi Sheng calmed down completely. He said with a gloomy face, "Come here, help me change my clothes."
-
The autumn nights are getting colder, and the cicadas are crying sadly.
Ever since Wei Yan was impeached by the Li family for colluding with a rebel party, he has claimed to be ill and has not attended court.
The moonlight cast a frosty white cast on the stone pavement in the courtyard, as if the first snow had fallen.
A small light shone through the window of the study. The attendant passed through the layers of soldiers guarding outside the courtyard, opened the door, and said to the old man who was sitting on the ground in front of a low table and playing chess with him, "Prime Minister, a distinguished guest has arrived."
Wei Yan's chess game was interrupted. His wrinkled eyelids slightly raised, reflecting the candlelight beside the chessboard. He said in a dignified manner without being angry: "Didn't I tell you that you won't see anyone who comes?"
The waiter held up something with both hands and showed it to him.
It is a mutton-fat jade ring with dragon patterns carved on it.
This is what the emperor wears.
Wei Yan only glanced at it, then withdrew his gaze, as if he didn't pay attention at all. At this moment, he had remembered the chess position he wanted to place. His old and thin index finger and middle finger twisted the black piece and fell into the chessboard. The entire chess game was instantly reversed.
He said, "I have learned from the old man of the Li family for so many years, but I still can't keep my composure."
The waiter didn't dare to say anything and waited for him to continue giving instructions.
Wei Yan said, "Since he is here, let him in."
In a moment, Qi Sheng, wearing casual clothes and a wide cloak, appeared outside Wei Yan's study.
He wanted to go into the study, but the soldiers in the courtyard crossed their halberds to signal him not to go any further.
Qi Sheng stood there for a moment with an ugly face. Thinking of what the Li family was going to do, he immediately lost all dignity and started crying, just like he had done countless times in the past ten years before Wei Yan. "Prime Minister, save me! The Li family wants to depose me and establish another monarch!"
No one spoke in the study. From the shadow projected on the door screen, Qi Sheng could tell that Wei Yan was playing chess alone.
Qi Sheng secretly gritted his teeth and continued to plead with tears in his eyes: "Prime Minister, I will be obedient. In the past, I was deceived by the Li family. I know that only the Prime Minister is wholeheartedly doing good for me. The Li family also wants to frame the Prime Minister for colluding with the rebels, and I will seek justice for the Prime Minister!"
Qi Sheng said all the nice things he could think of, but the figure in the study seemed to be deaf to his words.
Qi Sheng was truly frightened at this point. Thinking that he would be driven off the throne or even executed in secret, he no longer cared about saying nice things and could only sob and burst into tears.
He didn't know when the door of the study was opened until Wei Yan's solemn and majestic voice penetrated the cold wind of the autumn night and reached his eardrums: "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, so you should have the etiquette of an emperor."
Qi Sheng raised his head quickly and saw Wei Yan standing at the door of the study room with his hands behind his back, wearing only an ordinary cloth shirt. However, he looked as if he was standing on the edge of a cliff and standing on a mountain. He hurriedly wagged his tail and begged for mercy like a bereaved dog, "Prime Minister, save me..."
Wei Yan interrupted him coldly: "Are the rebels approaching the city, or is Li Sui forcing the emperor to abdicate?"
Li Sui is the real name of Li Taifu.
Qi Sheng was speechless. Over the years, the fear of Wei Yan seemed to have become an instinct ingrained in him.
"The imperial city is still there, the palace is safe, your majesty, what is there to fear?"
Wei Yan continued to ask. His voice was not loud, but it made Qi Sheng feel breathless.
But with his words, Qi Sheng felt half relieved.
He continued to act like a nervous child, looking at Wei Yan helplessly: "Yes...I lost my manners tonight."
Wei Yan turned around and closed the door: "In this case, Your Majesty should return to the palace."
Qi Sheng shouted: "Prime Minister!"
The waiter stepped forward and respectfully gestured "please" to Qi Sheng, but his attitude was full of toughness.
Qi Sheng stared at the closed study door and continued, "It was the Prime Minister who allowed me to ascend the throne seventeen years ago. I know that the Prime Minister is the only one who will always be on the same page with me. In this world, I only trust the Prime Minister."
Qi Sheng's voice was no longer heard outside the courtyard, as if he had been led away by the waiter. Wei Yan sat in front of the chessboard, and a rare hint of deep hatred appeared in his eyes, which were usually expressionless.
I don't know whether she hated Qi Sheng or hated the fact that he was full of lies and resembled an old friend.
After a long while, he finally spoke: "Since the Li family wants the emperor's eldest grandson to appear in front of the world, they should take out a bait from the dungeon. If he is really the descendant of Prince Chengde, he will not be indifferent to this."
-
Xie Zheng has been very busy recently, and Fan Changyu often doesn't see him in the army.
Occasionally, she asked Tang Peiyi indirectly, and Tang Peiyi said he didn't know. However, the look in her eyes always made Fan Changyu feel uncomfortable and he didn't dare to ask more.
The meritorious soldiers will go to the capital to receive titles. The army is preparing to go to the capital today. With Tang Peiyi and Deputy General He busy with these, Fan Changyu is happy to take some time off.
That night, she was sleeping in her room and felt someone approaching. She adjusted her breathing quietly. When the person was about to touch the bed, she grabbed his wrist and bent it back. She was about to press the person onto the bed to restrict his movements, but he grabbed her knees and lifted her up. She lost her balance and fell down with him.
Xie Zheng held the man in his arms and refused to let go. With a hint of fatigue in his voice, he praised him, "You are quite alert."
Fan Changyu guessed it was him the moment she felt the hand around her waist. She struggled hard twice but failed to break free. She nudged his chest with her elbow and asked, "Where have you been these past two days?"
Xie Zheng heard her ask this and opened his eyes in the dark: "Have you looked for me?"
He now has only two places to stay in Jizhou, one is the military camp and the other is the city lord's mansion.
After they reconciled, Fan Changyu rarely took the initiative to look for him except for official business. When he heard him ask, he felt a little embarrassed and said, "I saw that you haven't seen anyone for a few days, so I just asked casually."
Xie Zheng didn't point it out, he kissed her face twice before letting her go, and said, "There are some things to deal with, I went to gather some people and make some arrangements."
Fan Changyu asked: "What's the matter?"
As Xie Zheng undressed her, he said, "There's news from the capital that some of the men who followed your grandfather in transporting supplies are still alive, but they've been controlled by Wei Yan."
When Fan Changyu heard that it was related to the grain transportation of the past, his mind was captured. When he felt a chill on his shoulder and realized what Xie Zheng was doing, he slapped the back of his hand hard and shouted, "What are you doing!"
Xie Zheng felt that the slap he received was a little unfair. He put a small iron box in Fan Changyu's hand and said, "I asked someone to find this scar-removing ointment for you. I brought it here especially for you to apply."
Fan Changyu stared, but still fiercely: "Give me the ointment and I can apply it myself. What's the point of you undressing me without saying a word?"
In order to arrange for his subordinates to go back to Beijing to investigate the truth, Xie Zheng personally went back to the Xie family in Huizhou these two days. He was already tired after traveling day and night, and when he arrived in Jizhou and came to her, he just wanted to give her the ointment and sleep next to her for a while to catch up on his sleep.
Whenever he was upset these days, he could only calm down when he was with her.
But now seeing her so startled and alert, like a leopard with its fur standing on end, his eyes suddenly darkened, and he pressed her into his arms and kissed her from head to toe, then bit her shoulder again with hatred: "You hurt me."
The force of his bite was quite strong. Fan Changyu bared his teeth for a while, then pulled open his clothes and was about to bite back.
He seemed to have just come in after a shower. There was no unpleasant smell of sweat on his body, but instead a light scent of soap. Fan Changyu's sharp fangs tightened, causing him to groan, and his whole body stiffened like a stone.
"Come down." Xie Zheng's voice was no longer right.
Unfortunately, it was night time, and his voice was low to begin with, so Fan Changyu didn't hear it. She bit her shoulder and rubbed it again, feeling unsatisfied, and said vaguely, "You are allowed to bite me, you dog..."
The next moment, she was thrown off by Xie Zheng, and the two switched positions.
Without saying a word, he just looked at her, then lowered his head and kissed her fiercely and manically, and one hand reached into her already unbuttoned collar.
Fan Changyu usually tied his chest for convenience in the army, and took it off when he rested at night.
Xie Zheng didn't know her dressing habits and thought she would have at least one more layer underneath. When his hand with the thin silk band unexpectedly touched something heavy, smooth and soft, they were both stunned.
Fan Changyu reflexively raised his foot to kick, but Xie Zheng took advantage of the situation and held down his leg.
As he buried his head in her neck and panted, his breath felt like it was on fire.
Fan Changyu was so ashamed and angry that he shouted, "Get out of here!"
Xie Zheng didn't say anything, but Fan Changyu felt him squeeze her hard. She was so horrified that she scolded him, "You're a filthy person!"
The next movement seemed like someone was dismantling a bed. Someone's foot kicked the bed frame, and the whole bed was shaking and about to fall down.
Aunt Zhao woke up at night and heard the noise in Fan Changyu's room. She knocked on the door and asked, "Changyu, what's that noise in your room?"
Fan Changyu said angrily: "A mouse got into the house and I was killing it!"
Aunt Zhao was confused and asked, "Why don't you light a lamp to catch mice?"
Fan Changyu could only continue to talk nonsense: "I... I have good eyesight, so I don't need to turn on the light. I have already killed the mouse. Auntie, please go back to your room and sleep."
Aunt Zhao told her to go to bed early, and then she went back to her room.
Fan Changyu was already sweating from the fight between the two men just now. Their hands and feet were tangled together, and neither of them could subdue the other. When Fan Changyu breathed, his chest was still rising and falling violently.
Xie Zheng had been bitten by her on the shoulder before, and his clothes had been torn apart. Now, one of his arms was holding Fan Changyu's hand behind her back, pressing her into the quilt. The place where their skin was touching seemed to be on fire, and the flesh under the skin was sizzling.
Fan Changyu placed his other hand on his chin, which was a case of both sides suffering losses.
Fan Changyu whispered, "I'll count to one, two, three, and we'll let go together."
Xie Zheng replied in a hoarse voice: "Okay."
Fan Changyu began to count: "One, two...three!"
After the three counts, neither of them let go of the other.
Fan Changyu complained: "Why don't you keep your word!"
Xie Zheng only said: "Didn't you let go?"
Both of them were silent.
After a while, Fan Changyu said, "We have to make a concession. Do you want to stay like this all night?"
“…It’s not impossible.”
After hearing this, Fan Changyu got angry again and said fiercely: "You are just dreaming, you will take advantage of me!"
Xie Zheng's voice was a little hoarse: "You tore the front of my robe."
Fan Changyu's eyes were about to spit fire: "That was a fight, not that I had any bad intentions towards you!"
There was silence in the air for about a breath or two, and Xie Zheng suddenly said, "It is true that I have some plans for you."
Fan Changyu was stunned. He didn't expect him to be so straightforward at this moment. He muttered, "It's good that you know it."
Unexpectedly, the other party asked her: "What do you say?"
Fan Changyu glared and said, "Of course, let me go immediately and get out of my room."
Her hand was on Xie Zheng's jaw. She didn't know how he moved, but Fan Changyu felt that he suddenly tilted his head and she lost her grip on his jaw. Instead, her hand was bitten by his teeth, not too hard or too light.
Xie Zheng looked down at her and said, "It's a dream."
Fan Changyu was furious.
After making so much noise for so long, Xie Zheng must have been tired. He kissed her shoulders twice more before wrapping her clothes and holding her in his arms. He said tiredly, "Don't move. Let me hold you and sleep for a while. I'll leave at dawn and come back in half a month."
When Fan Changyu heard that he had just returned and was going to be away for another half a month, his anger subsided and he did not move. He just asked, "Where are you going?"
Xie Zheng lay on his side, his chin resting on her shoulder, sniffing her scent and said vaguely: "I will go to Beijing. No matter whether the news released is true or false, I will find out the truth behind Jinzhou."
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