Chapter 86
◎Two chapters in one◎
It was getting dark, and after the fiery red clouds dispersed, it was pitch black. Huiyin never liked the dusk. She always felt that everything would become scary at night, and people's sensitive emotions would become the most sensitive. She rarely thought about Li Cheng before, but now she missed him very much.
At least when he was by her side, he was like a door god, and she didn't feel nervous at all.
People outside think that she is invincible and has no plan left. However, hidden under her tough shell, she is actually very scared when she sees the darkness at night. She doesn't even dare to show this weakness for fear of being controlled by those around her.
She tossed and turned all night, and couldn't get up the next morning, so she had to take a nap a little longer.
When she got up, she applied a lot of powder under her eyes. Today was her centenary day. There was a war on the front line, so she didn't want to make a big fuss. She just invited these heroes to the palace to build relationships, gave them a few tables of banquets, and rewarded them to show her kindness.
"Your Majesty, did you not sleep well last night?" Lingjiu asked.
Huiyin smiled: "I read a very interesting book before going to bed last night. I couldn't fall asleep when I went to bed. I kept thinking about the things in the book. Do I look haggard?"
"Before, your face looked like a peeled egg, like white jade. Now, the circles around your eyes are a little dark." Lingjiu knew that Huiyin was not the type who liked to hear lies, so he told the truth.
Huiyin said: "I think so, but there is nothing I can do about it. I am born to be superficial."
She slept alone in an empty palace, with no one around her knowing. She even had to protect her son and maintain all of this. She couldn't let outsiders see any flaws.
After packing up, Huiyin stood up with satisfaction looking at the dignified face. However, she had stayed up too late at night and now seemed a little shaky, but she could still hold on.
In fact, compared to her, the ladies of the imperial had it even worse. They had to get up before dawn and put on heavy makeup, and they couldn't eat too much smelly food. They had to wait in a carriage for the palace gate to open. After the palace gate opened, they could enter the palace in a stream, holding their breath and concentration, and not talking casually. After arriving at the Linde Hall, they had to kneel down and kowtow to pay their respects. all.
The older ones, such as Huiyin, had to be helped up, and the younger ones were also wearing heavy clothes. After finally sitting down, everyone had to bow again and wish her a happy birthday, and even Ji had to kneel down.
Huiyin sat at the top and said to everyone, "Today, I, the Palace Master, have really troubled everyone."
"Your Majesty, what are you talking about? It is our honor to enter the palace to celebrate your birthday." As the empress's sister-in-law and the wife of the crown prince, it was most appropriate for Cui Yuehuan to be the first to speak.
Huiyin smiled slightly. When the maids brought in the tea, she spoke: "This is the new tea. It tastes a bit bitter on the tip of my tongue, but then turns sweet. It's not like the early spring tea I served you before, which was fresh and tender."
Speaking of tea, Jiang Bibo's family originally had a tea business, so he could say: "Your Majesty's tea is good. The minister in front did not find it bitter when he drank it. Instead, it had a very fragrant taste. That fragrance was not the grassy fragrance of tea, but a somewhat mushy and fragrant taste."
"You are really an expert. This tea has been roasted once first, so it is particularly fragrant and tastes better." Huiyin took another sip and took a sip gently. In fact, she didn't dare to drink more because she was afraid that she would not be able to sleep if she drank too much.
Jiang Bibo even said he didn't dare.
Huiyin asked Madam Yuwen and Jiang Bibo again: "Have you two passed the invitation now?"
Madam Yuwen seldom took her daughter out, so Huiyin had only seen the child once when she was very young. Now that these two families were considered important officials, she had to ask a question.
Jiang Bibo smiled and said, "It just matched our horoscopes. Everything is fine."
"That's good. When they get married, I will definitely reward them." Huiyin smiled.
Besides, because Ji often went to the palace, she couldn't say too much in front of others, so she just said, "How are the crown prince and the second prince?"
Huiyin said, "Today is my birthday. They should rest for half a day and come to greet me in the afternoon."
Jing'er is still young, but there are many people who want to get promoted and make money by relying on him, so she can't let Jing'er go out to meet people at will. Children rarely have the ability to distinguish between good and evil. No matter how sensible they look, they are easily brainwashed by the idea that if you indulge me, you are right to me, and if you are strict with me, you are bad to me. Not to mention the outsiders, even those wet nurses around him who are too inappropriate will be sent away by Huiyin.
So, she deliberately separated these people.
When Li Cheng returns in the future and his son is able to take charge of government affairs, at least he will not be misjudged.
After saying that, he waved to Sister Xian and said, "Come and sit next to me."
She didn't have a daughter, and Xian Jie'er was her brother's child. Although she didn't dare to say that she treated her as her own, she hoped that the child would be happier than she and Deyin in the future. They were both political marriages, and whether their lives were good or not mostly dependent on their husbands. The child's conditions now are much better than theirs.
Seeing Huiyin lift up Xian Jie'er like this, Jiang Bibo thought that it would be better if her husband had not been engaged to Yuwen Dang's daughter. Xian Jie'er was the niece of the queen. Although she was young, she was beautiful and much prettier than Yuwen Dang's daughter, Yuwen Chonghua. yellow-skinned and a little fat.
Of course, it is better to get married with two surnames, and Jiang Bibo will not show it, but it is easy for a man to go out and have sex with a beautiful woman at home, let alone with such an ordinary appearance?
It's not that Jiang Bibo discriminates against others. She just observes that her stepson is quite arrogant. He grew up by the side of the empress and has good taste. If that's the case, he should be more worthy of a beautiful and talented woman. This marriage was a bit hasty.
But Jiang Bibo was also very aware of her own identity and would not say a word that she shouldn't say. After all, she was just a stepmother and all she had to do was carry out her duties.
Seeing that the empress was kind to her daughter, Xin was of course happy in her heart, but she also said, "The empress loves her and she also cares about you. She made a pair of purses at home to celebrate your birthday."
The maid took it over immediately. Huiyin saw that it was a green satin base with pink peaches embroidered on it. The stitches looked immature, but the stitches were fine and dense. It must have taken a lot of effort. She praised, "Xianjie can even make a purse now. It's really not easy."
Sister Xian said shyly, "Aunt, I am ashamed to accept your compliment."
"Mother Nan, I remember there were a few gold-dust fans. Bring them over for Sister Xian to play with." Huiyin looked at her lovingly.
Cui Yuehuan, who was standing by, thought to herself that it would be great if she could give birth to a daughter. She had no objection to Xian Jie'er. This child was the only girl in their family and everyone loved her very much.
Huiyin then asked about the other family members' living conditions in Beijing and whether they could adapt. She also gave them some valuable gifts that were not available outside, such as rosary beads, tribute silk, and spices, and asked the Shengping Office to prepare two short plays. After listening to the performances, they had a meal before leaving.
The other ladies left, but Ji, Xin, and Cui Yuehuan came back to talk.
Every time this happened, Xin and Cui Yuehuan would compare themselves, and they would tell each other what they knew. Cui Yuehuan felt that she didn't do a good job last time, but this time she had quite a lot of information: "I heard that the girl from the Yuwen family was obese and had a sallow complexion, so Madam Yuwen didn't let anyone see her all year round. This time, we are talking about the Guo family, and we want to use the relationship between the elders of the two families to settle the marriage, so as not to reveal it when we go out to socialize, which would make it difficult to talk about the marriage."
This is the worst part of blind marriages. They only consider family background or the relationship between the two parties, but do not care whether the man and woman are really compatible with each other.
"So that's the case, what's the girl from the Yuwen family's personality like?" Huiyin asked.
Cui Yuehuan was very conservative: "We only met once, so I don't know what his personality is like."
Huiyin had no choice but to say, "As long as the girl has a good temper, it's fine. Since ancient times, lovers have always admired Xi Shi. It's fine as long as both parties have a suitable temperament."
After hearing Cui Yuehuan talk about Yuwen Zhonghua so quickly, she had another thing in mind: "Prince Yuzhang's sister, Princess Jianjia, seems to be looking for a son-in-law as well. But they have only been in the capital for a short time and don't know anyone. They said they were planning to hold a flower banquet. In my opinion, they want to use the flower banquet to find a good husband."
This is also human nature, Huiyin thought. She also knew that Princess Wei and the others must have money, but the money must not be much, and it must be for Jianjia's dowry.
But who Jianjia was looking for was not her business.
The King of Wei is already dead, and many of his former subordinates have joined Wei Duo. The rest have either joined Li Cheng or behaved like birds and beasts. Unless the King of Yuzhang is exceptionally talented, he will not be able to make a name for himself.
"Since she wants to look for him, let him go. I remember that Prince Yuzhang is not very old, but it is almost time for them to get married. Their palace will be very lively."
These things were all irrelevant. She yawned quietly. Seeing this, Ji asked, "Are you tired, Madam?"
"It was a bit cold yesterday and I didn't sleep well at night." Huiyin waved her hands.
As a result, Ji and the others could not stay any longer and left. Since Huiyin did not leave Xianjie behind, Xin took her daughter away, feeling a little regretful.
As soon as they left, Huiyin returned to her bedroom, took off her hairpins, washed her face with water, and went to bed to rest.
Fugui tucked Huiyin's quilt in and did some needlework with Nan's mother. She added, "Your Majesty has worked hard enough. There is not a single day when you can rest at ease."
Nan's mother said distressedly, "That's right. When the queen was having a good time last year, there were many spies. She had to brave the wind at night to visit the crown prince and the second prince. She felt uncomfortable when she came back. It's really not easy for her to be both a father and a mother. What do people outside know? They just think that our queen is spoiled and only see the bright side. But who knows the pain inside?"
But Huiyin didn't care about all that. She slept for two hours and regained her sleep. Then when it was time for dinner, she called her sons over to have dinner with her. She was in high spirits and chatted and joked with them.
It is also said that the Princess of Wei was very concerned about her daughter's marriage because she saw that her daughter was getting older. Especially since people younger than her daughter, such as Guo Xing, were about to get engaged, but Jianjia still had no husband.
When Jianjia grew up, the princesses of Wei also discussed with their daughter: "Don't be shy, this is your lifelong event. This time, we are the mothers and we are the ones who make the decision. It will no longer be like in previous years when your father made the decision."
Speaking of the King of Wei, Jianjia said, "If my father were still alive, why would we have to live under someone else's roof and depend on others for our favors?"
"If your father were still alive, he might not be stronger than your cousin. The two of us would still have to endure the wrath of that evil spirit Xu. Let's not mention her. Her death was tragic enough. It's unlucky to mention her." The Princess of Wei did not like the Concubine Xu. The two of them colluded with Wei Duo, which led to the destruction of Wei. Otherwise, it would not have come to this.
Jianjia also thought of the past days, when her mother always drank those medicines. If she wanted to have another brother, she had to ask Concubine Yin for help. She was nice to Li Jing many times, just thinking that she would have someone to take care of him in the future.
Unfortunately, everything is in vain. Life is really just a few short years, but it seems like a lifetime ago.
Princess Wei didn't know many people, so she sent invitations to those she knew and prepared wine and food. Although Yin Lifang was temporarily inferior to others, she was unwilling to be inferior in front of others.
Qiaozhen advised: "If you don't go out, outsiders will think you are really inferior. What if you are on equal footing with her? Even if she is the queen in the palace, she will give you the same gifts as her."
"Yes, I am the biological mother of Prince Yuzhang. If I claim to be sick, it would make me look weak. I was in the palace and saw that Zheng was in high spirits and full of energy every day. Who dares to underestimate her? No one in the palace dares to fool her." Yin Lifang was cautious and respectful before because of her status, and it is still because of her status now. Why should she be so timid? If she didn't have her son and this palace, where would the Huo mother and daughter go to show off their power?
Let's not talk about how the Princess of Wei and the Second Princess of Yin fought at the flower banquet that day. Princess Jianjia was not a popular girl among the new nobles, and her popularity was not as good as that of the much younger Xian Jie'er. Because those who knew the inside story knew very well that when the emperor established his own family, the people on the side of the King of Wei had some complaints, so these people could not hold back.
However, there were some wealthy families in the capital who were unaware of this, and two of them sent matchmakers to propose marriage to her.
This was completely different from what Princess Wei had imagined, and she was not very satisfied with these two families. Yin Lifang also sighed, "Sister, Jianjia is too old to wait any longer. Even if we decide on it this year, it will take two years to prepare for the marriage."
They tacitly kept their adult affairs from the children. Even if Yin Lifang acted aggrieved in front of her son, she would not directly say anything bad about Princess Wei.
"Yes, it will take several years to prepare for the wedding." Princess Wei counted on her fingers.
Then, the Princess of Wei asked Madam Sun for help. Madam Sun was originally the wife of an old minister of Wei, and she had a good relationship with the Princess of Wei. When she saw the Princess of Wei asking her for help, she thought of someone: "If it's a family with high status, there really is someone. I heard that the Emperor's cousin Cui Erlang just lost his wife. The Cui family is a noble family, and the man is also very talented."
Princess Wei went directly to the palace to ask for Huiyin's help for this marriage. She knew very well that this marriage could not be done privately, otherwise it would be suspected of collusion.
As expected, Huiyin laughed and said, "Cui Erlang is a widower, how can he be worthy of the princess? In my opinion, you should find someone of the same age and appearance."
"Does the Empress have any candidates? We are widows and unemployed, like headless flies, we know nothing." Princess Wei also hoped that Huiyin could find an excellent marriage for her.
Huiyin smiled and said, "I have lived in the palace for a long time and I don't recognize anyone."
The Princess of Wei was a little disappointed, but she was no longer depressed after leaving the palace. She actually found a marriage partner, and the man was not someone else, but the son of Xun Rou's stepmother. Both sides were relatives, and they hit it off immediately.
Princess Wei and Jianjia were very happy. They ate the offerings together under the candlelight. They were looking forward to the day of marriage. The Xun family was a royal family. As long as the emperor was there, their daughter would be fine. The young man was good at painting and had a good appearance. He was a good match.
However, Yin Liyi could not enjoy such a warm scene. She also had a son and a daughter. Old Madam Xie's attitude towards her changed drastically. She scolded her as the reincarnation of a disaster star. Xie Jiuyi, who should have stood on her side, was surprisingly silent. Yin Liyi was silently miserable these days.
Xie Jiuyi went out today, and her two children ate at the same table with her. The daughter was fine, but the son was clamoring to go to his grandmother's place before he even finished eating.
"Son, the meal is not finished yet. Your grandmother is old and can't stand the quarrels. It's better for her to stay here with your mother." Yin Liyi said.
She has been accompanying her children almost all the time in the past two years. Xie Jiuyi rarely lets them go out of the house. She knows nothing about the outside world, let alone her sister and nephews.
But she couldn't bring it up again, as it was a knot between her and Xie Jiuyi. If it was brought up, it would explode and both of them would be covered in bruises.
Today, when Xie Jiuyi came back, he no longer looked bitter and resentful. He even took the initiative to say, "I found out where your sister is."
"Really? Where?" Yin Liyi immediately sat up from the bed.
Xie Jiuyi smiled, which was rare for him. "Your nephew has already gone to the capital. He has been granted a palace in the capital. I guess your sister is living with him too."
Yin Liyi was very happy. She didn't want to speculate about others, but she wondered what would happen if her sister didn't live a good life? Would Xie Jiuyi still ignore her?
I can't think too deeply about these things. Even when he married me, on the surface he was marrying me, the daughter of a minor official, but could it be because of my sister?
**
In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year again. Huiyin was arranging palace servants to clean the palace. Some palace maids had been released recently, and a group of young maids were recruited from Jizhou, Qingzhou and Xizhou.
The person has changed again. Huiyin looked at herself in the bronze mirror and seemed to have aged another year.
In the past, she disliked those women who were resentful of their wives, but now she has some of those tendencies, and she really regrets teaching her husband to seek a title. Fortunately, she finally won the hard battle with Wei Duo, and she will be able to see her husband soon.
I haven't seen him for two years, and I wonder if he has become rougher? Also, will he fall in love with someone else on the front line? If he falls in love with someone else, then I have to choose someone to love, right?
However, she doesn't seem to have much interest in men.
While thinking about this, she looked up and saw a person in the bronze mirror. Suddenly, Huiyin stood up and asked, "You, why did you suddenly appear behind me? Is this an illusion?"
Li Cheng missed Huiyin more and more along the way, so he simply brought people back early, wanting to give Huiyin a surprise, and did not let anyone know. Unexpectedly, he was pinched by his wife. He deliberately grinned, completely disregarding his image, he was just happy, so happy that he hugged his wife.
"It's not an illusion, I'm really back, and I'm running non-stop to see you earlier." Li Cheng didn't want to let go when he felt her body temperature and heartbeat.
Huiyin wanted to say something sentimental, but seeing that he had shaved and combed his hair well, she smiled and said, "You didn't run non-stop, you must have washed up in the middle."
Li Cheng's ears were slightly red. "That's because you said I smelled like a horse after riding a horse, so you didn't allow me to touch you."
"I'm also thinking about my health. You don't know that I often can't sleep when you're not by my side. Really..." Huiyin said to him in a sweet voice.
Li Cheng simply picked her up and carried her to the bed.
When the two of them came out again, it was already two hours later. Li Cheng felt like he was in great pain. Huiyin said silently, "I thought you would bring me a sister back?"
"Honestly, wasn't what I did just now enough? I've been holding it in for two years. With this much force, are you trying to kill me?" Li Cheng still felt aggrieved.
Just now Huiyin complained that he had turned darker, and also said that he had an affair outside. She was totally wrongly accusing him.
From riding a horse during battle, my legs were covered with sores.
Huiyin smiled and waved her hands: "Stop it, we are really afraid of being overheard. Tell me, how did you win? Amitabha, you don't know how worried I am. That old thief Wei Duo has endless tricks."
In her previous life, when she was the Queen Mother, her father was not afraid at first when he heard that Wei Duo was going to be beaten, but later he became a little scared.
Li Chengze walked away, smiling, "Thanks to my eldest cousin, he sent someone to inform me that I had a spy. So, it was difficult for me to write to you, so I sent you some plums. You have done a great job."
"Oh, it's him." Huiyin suddenly understood why Li Cheng didn't write a letter but sent Li Zi instead, and then wrote a letter back.
Li Cheng smiled and said, "Yes, I deliberately designed it so that Zhao Hong would take the initiative to surrender to Wei Duo. I had to win people's trust, and I relied on this cousin. If I had conferred the title of nobility on the Cui family at the beginning, they might not have worked so hard. This cousin might not have been helping me, but he saw that my power was growing, so he turned against me. In the end, Wei Duo was killed by me, and Zhao Hong had already surrendered to the court."
Most of Daye's territory was taken, and Huiyin sighed: "These things were hard for us to imagine before, but now they have all come true."
Li Cheng added: "I have to thank you for your breastplate. I originally thought it was a bit cumbersome. Who wears two breastplates? But that day, Wei Duo died by false pretense. His heart was on the right side. He wanted to shoot me from the horse. It was because I had a breastplate that I was saved."
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