Chapter 62
With the Bai family's grand gathering approaching, more and more martial arts practitioners gathered in the small town of Xinghua. After a short rest, they all headed to Yunxi Prefecture.
Luo Yan was completely unaware of this, and was even unaware that people from Medicine King Valley were secretly observing her.
All she knew was that Zhu Yun had tricked her into fooling around in the tent for a long time that night, so much so that her legs were sore and she didn't even have the strength to move a finger.
Rouge continued to be delivered for the next few days.
Luo Yan didn't even look at it and told A-Zhi to throw it away. In the end, she simply covered her ears, so that A-Zhi wouldn't even have to tell her.
Luo Yan was soaking in Feng Mengshu's study.
Feng Mengshu was a compiler at the Hanlin Academy, and his bookshelves were mostly filled with history books.
Historical records focus primarily on emperors, inevitably mentioning the next emperor, Zhu Yun.
Luo Yan chose politics, history, and geography in high school, so although history books were difficult to read, they were not incomprehensible.
In the sixth year of the Chaoqing era, Empress Da Wang committed suicide, and her cousin, Xiao Wang, was made Empress.
In the same year, the seventh prince was born on the way to the Qingyun Temple to offer incense, hence the name Yun.
This is Zhu Yun now.
Luo Yan tightened her grip, paused for a moment, and then turned to the next page.
The story of Zhu Yun was written on a whole page.
In the eighth year of the Chaoqing reign, the seventh prince Yun was bestowed the title of Zhu Yun, and Chen Shu, an imperial censor of the Censorate, and Wei Sidao, a grand secretary, were appointed as Zhu Yun's Grand Tutor and Grand Preceptor.
Zhu Yun was exceptionally talented from a young age. He could compose poems at the age of three and prose at the age of seven. At the age of fourteen, he entered the court to assist in government affairs and was highly praised by all officials.
In the twenty-fourth year of the Chaoqing reign, Zhu Yunyun, along with the Minister of Personnel, purged corrupt officials in the court. He appointed Cheng Hua, Zhao Huai, Zhang Xian, Wang Lang, and others to impeach more than twenty powerful and influential families, including Zhang Yu, Zou Qi, and Fang Yu'en. Those impeached were demoted or executed.
The 25th year of the reign of Emperor Chaoqing. "My lord, you've been hungry all day, have something to eat."
Feng Mengshu suddenly asked, "What year and month is it now?"
Why do you look like you're still spacing out?
Chunsheng said, "The 26th year of the Chaoqing reign, April 18th."
April 18th, April 18th.
Feng Mengshu read it twice and murmured, "It's the day of the peace talks between Da Zhao and Bei Mo."
"What did you say, Ah Lang?"
Feng Mengshu pushed aside the food, spread out paper, and picked up a brush. Chunsheng thought Feng Mengshu was going to write a letter home, so he quickly ground the ink.
After watching for a while, Feng Mengshu only wrote one sentence: "...Xing was imprisoned..."
There are two more characters before "Xing," which should be a person's name, but Chunsheng doesn't recognize them.
April 19th.
The court assembly had just ended when several court officials gathered again in the council hall to discuss the peace negotiations between the Great Zhao and the Northern Desert.
The Minister of War reported: "Although we have won this battle, our dynasty has lost two great generals and suffered heavy casualties. It is precisely the time for us to recuperate and rebuild. The matter of peace talks should be discussed sooner rather than later."
This was precisely the consensus among those in the court.
This war started with Zhang Yu and was originally an internal affair, but Zhang Yu defected to the Northern Desert, which attracted Fu Zhaoxing, and thus it became an external affair.
Without Zhang Yu, the Great Zhao and the Northern Desert would have lived in peace, the people would have lived in harmony, and the world would have been stable.
The emperor nodded: "How shall we discuss the matter of compensation?"
Before anyone could answer, a palace attendant announced the arrival of the Fifth Prince.
The Fifth Prince knelt down: "Father, the Northern Desert has agreed to all of our dynasty's conditions, including the return of Yan City."
Yancheng was seized by the Northern Desert. If the fighting continues, the Great Zhao can also take it back. However, Yancheng is easy to defend and difficult to attack, which will require a lot of troops.
The fact that they could reclaim it without losing a single soldier was a cause for celebration, and several court officials smiled.
However, the Fifth Prince changed the subject and mentioned the conditions of the Northern Desert: "The envoy brought news from the Emperor of the Northern Desert, demanding that our dynasty release Fu Zhaoxing."
The room was completely silent.
Someone asked, "Didn't Fu Zhaoxing fall into the water and disappear before the battle? That river is still within the jurisdiction of the Northern Desert. Why aren't they looking for him? Why are they asking us for him?"
The Fifth Prince said, "The Northern Desert insists that Fu Zhaoxing is being held by Zhu Yun of our dynasty. If Fu Zhaoxing is not released, all the peace terms will be null and void."
The room erupted in heated discussion, all about Bei Mo's unreasonable and disruptive behavior.
The emperor stopped his court officials and asked the fifth prince, "Does the Northern Desert have any evidence?"
The Fifth Prince glanced at the Emperor: "Fu Zhaoxing's trusted lieutenant said that he personally witnessed Zhu Yun's men fighting with Fu Zhaoxing at the Wuhui River. Half a day later, Zhu Yun's men rode back to the camp, with one person still bound on their horse. There were many soldiers present that day, and they can all testify to this."
Duke Guo Da of Dingguo chuckled twice: "Do you all still remember the Buddha's Birthday?"
The officials remained silent.
The Buddha wept as he investigated for a long time, finding no possibility other than divine intervention. Meanwhile, the people who had been trampled to death outside the temple had only recently been buried, and even the abduction of innocent women in Yanjing had not been solved.
Zhu Yun was embroiled in numerous rumors and was still in seclusion in the palace reflecting on his mistakes. Before one wave subsided, another arose.
The emperor pondered for a moment: "Summon Zhu Yun."
Zhu Yun was dressed in plain clothes, her clothes tinged with the scent of sandalwood.
I heard that the Empress ordered Zhu Yun to meditate and contemplate Buddhism for the past ten days or so, and it seems that it is true.
The emperor sized up Zhu Yun, his back straight, kneeling like a pine tree: "Xuanji has lost weight."
Zhu Yun looked up at the emperor and said, "Xuanji always keeps his father's teachings in mind and dares not be careless."
Seeing the emperor's tender gestures towards Zhu Yun, the Fifth Prince's expression turned cold: "Zhu Yun, Fu Zhaoxing has been detained by you. Where is he?"
Zhu Yun glanced sideways: "Fu Zhaoxing fell into the Wuhui River, and his exact whereabouts are unknown."
The Fifth Prince unfolded the document in his hand: "There is a letter from Fu Zhaoxing's confidant as proof, saying that he saw Zhu Yun's men fighting with Fu Zhaoxing before riding back alone, with someone who looked like Fu Zhaoxing tied up on the horse."
Zhu Yun said, "Those were just ordinary prisoners of war, and they have been handed over to the army after returning to the main camp."
The Fifth Prince said, "But the last person Fu Zhaoxing saw was one of Zhu Yun's men. The entire Wuhui River area in the Northern Desert has been searched, but there's no sign of him, neither alive nor dead. Why doesn't Zhu Yun summon that man of yours for questioning?"
Zhu Yun said, "That man's name is Apei, and he is indeed a skilled guard."
The Fifth Prince didn't want to hear the guard's name at all, and asked impatiently, "Why is Zhu Yun making excuses?"
Zhu Yun did not answer, but instead looked at the emperor: "Father, it is not that I am unwilling to pass on the throne to Apei, but Apei was pierced through the lungs by Fu Zhaoxing's silver spear. After returning to report with his last breath, Apei died from his injuries and was buried by me under a osmanthus tree in Yancheng. The city garrison commander of Yancheng can testify to this."
The emperor said calmly, "Then there's no way to prove it when the dead are dead."
Peace talks have been temporarily suspended.
However, the next day, the Duke of Dingguo reported that the Northern Desert prisoner mentioned by Zhu Yun could not be found in the army.
In April, Zhang Yu, the Duke of Fanyang, led the thirteen prefectures of Qinghe to defect.
In June, under the pretext of providing relief, General Fu Zhaoxing of the Northern Desert occupied the thirteen prefectures of Qinghe under Zhang Yu and besieged Qiuchi City.
Luo Yan didn't quite understand the power dynamics in the imperial court. The annotation beside her was in Feng Mengshu's handwriting:
"At that time, our dynasty sent generals to meet the enemy, and lost two great generals in succession, Yan Qingyun and Helan Yun. The court and the public all said that this was due to Zhu Yun's aggressive methods, which forced Zhang Yu to rebel and thus lost the thirteen prefectures of Qinghe."
And then there's another one:
In September, Zhu Yun volunteered to lead troops. In February of the following year, he defeated the enemy army, killed Zhang Yu, and Fu Zhaoxing disappeared.
In just two short sentences, a bloodbath and carnage were revealed.
The phrase "Fu Zhaoxing disappeared" was circled several times in red by Feng Mengshu, presumably indicating that it was an important point.
That concludes the record.
Closing the history book, Luo Yan remembered nothing.
All I remember is that the handwriting in this history book is very similar to that of Feng Mengshu, so it must have been copied by him.
I remember that Zhu Yun's teaching team looked very high-end, probably because the emperor had high hopes for them since they were young.
Zhu Yun did not disappoint, and in the end, he disguised himself as a good crown prince who was actually a wolf in sheep's clothing.
But... when Azhi returned from buying silk thread, she said to Luo Yan, "My lady, everyone outside is saying that Zhu Yun is doomed!"
The peace talks, which should have proceeded smoothly, became uncertain due to the disappearance of Fu Zhaoxing.
Adding to the controversy surrounding the Buddha's Birthday celebrations, Zhu Yun, who was most deeply involved, has become the target of public criticism and is now likely in dire straits.
Luo Yan had already sensed something was wrong, because in the last few days, the rouge had stopped being sent.
If only Zhu Yun could truly be finished, but Luo Yan knew that wouldn't be the case. As long as Zhu Yun was the emperor's son, even if he was suppressed, he would still be a member of the imperial family.
Luo Yan paced back and forth nervously.
This opportunity might never come again. She can't rely on others to save her; she has to do something.
Luo Yan suddenly remembered: "I remember that Consort Zhu Yun might be the daughter of Scholar Liu in the future. Is there any way to meet her?"
Azhi thought for a moment and said, "Miss Liu is holding a poetry gathering in the capital. If Madam wants to see her, she can only attend the poetry gathering."
Luo Yan immediately changed her clothes: "Then let's go to the poetry gathering!"
The sun shines brightly on the green trees and lakeside.
Liu Fu led a group of young women to admire the flowers and compose poems. In high spirits, they played a game of passing a flower while beating a drum, and even drank a few cups of wine.
The maidservant approached quietly and tugged at her sleeve: "Miss, a guest requests an audience."
Liu Fu got up and temporarily withdrew, following the maid.
Seeing the young women at the poetry gatherings gathered in twos and threes, reciting poems or writing calligraphy along the way, I felt very comforted.
The maid suddenly stopped: "Huh, where did he go? Just now, a servant clearly delivered a message for the master, saying that Miss must see him in person."
The maid went to the gatehouse to ask and then came back: "Miss, it's strange. The gatehouse said they've never seen the servant come or go."
That's really strange.
Liu Fu was a little drunk. She sat down at the nearest stone table and suddenly touched a book on the table.
The maid said, "Oh right, that servant was carrying a book and said he wanted to show it to Miss. It's this one."
Liu Fu opened the book, completely bewildered, and found a pair of pearl earrings tucked inside.
Luo Yan opened the history book again and finally realized that something was wrong—the emperor's attitude towards Zhu Yun.
In the eighth year of the Chaoqing reign, the emperor appointed Zhu Yun as a senior teacher.
However, in the twenty-fourth year of the Chaoqing reign, the emperor ordered Zhu Yun to crack down on corrupt officials, and the targets were not just any powerful and influential figures in Yanjing.
The powerful and wealthy have deep roots and are rich and powerful. If you are not careful, you can offend one of them and suffer assassination or other retaliation.
Later, Zhu Yun was blamed by the court and the public, and he risked going to the battlefield, but the emperor did not stop him.
Throughout history, the relationship between emperors and Zhu Yun has always been a mixture of kinship and suspicion, and this was clearly the case for the current royal father and son.
The emperor suppressed Zhu Yun, but Zhu Yun retaliated against the emperor.
The former relied on the innate imperial power, while the latter relied on the influence they cultivated, including subordinates, court officials, and wives...
Luo Yan finally remembered the concubine selection banquet in March.
"Azhi, last time at the Golden Carp Pond, when you were talking with the palace maids, did you hear anything about who might be Consort Zhu Yun?"
Azhi said timidly, "I heard she's the daughter of Grand Secretary Liu."
Luo Yan sat up straight.
She suddenly realized that the September that Cheng Hua hadn't mentioned must have been the decree to confer the title of Imperial Concubine Zhu Yun.
Regardless, Luo Yan is the wife of a sixth-rank compiler. If Zhu Yun's entanglement with an official's wife gets out, it will be a scandal, and the Liu family's marriage alliance with the royal family will have to be reconsidered.
Zhu Yun needs the support of his future wife's maternal family to contend with the emperor, so he will never reveal this matter.
He was more afraid than she was!
Once Luo Yan understood this, she felt completely at ease. Looking at those rouge boxes was like watching an old eunuch visiting a brothel.
As long as Consort Zhu Yun is alive, and as long as Zhu Yun remains under the Emperor's control, Zhu Yun is powerless and has no way to deal with her. The only thing he can do is send these things to disturb her peace of mind.
Moreover, with the Fifth Prince vying for the throne, Zhu Yun needs to be even more careful!
With his other hand, he lifted the wooden box, revealing four or five jade-green, long, rectangular objects of varying sizes.
Similar to what I glimpsed in the carriage.
He picked up the thinnest one with his slender fingers and held it in front of her. Although the pattern was simple, it was not hard to recognize that it was carved with... a male monster.
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