Chapter 09 Birthday
It rained last night, and the weeping crabapple flowers fell to the ground. The air was filled with the fragrance of flowers, and the palace was shrouded in the misty spring fog.
As soon as Wu Chun woke up, he heard Yu Li calling outside, "The eldest prince has a letter!"
Jing Lian whispered, "Keep your voice down, the eldest prince hasn't woken up yet..."
Hearing the words "eldest prince", Wu Chun almost jumped up from the couch, not caring about the soreness on his body, he put on his clothes in a hurry, ran to the window barefoot, pushed the window open, and his eyes were shining like stars, "Brother has a letter?"
Jing Lian said, "Oh, your highness, you are awake, this is the letter from the eldest prince to you." Then he handed the letter over, and there was also a paper package with the letter.
Wuchun is the daughter of Nanjiang King Wu Shanjiu and former Queen Liu. Liu also has a son named Wulei. Mother Liu died early, and the two siblings grew up together and had a deep relationship. After Liu died
, Nanjiang King married Yue soon after, and Yue gave birth to a daughter Wuzhao. Compared with Wuchun, Wuzhao was more favored by Nanjiang King because of her mother Yueshi's graceful demeanor. Wuchun was not disciplined by Nanjiang King and lived a semi-free life. Climbing trees to shoot birds, fishing in rivers, mingling with civilians to watch operas, and listening to storytellers on the roadside telling stories about talented men and beautiful women were all Wuchun's hobbies.
But Yueshi didn't like Wuchun's disobedience. As a queen, she also needed to establish her authority, so she was very strict with Wuchun, whose behavior was not very proper, and often suppressed her. Every time Wuchun was punished by Yueshi, Wulei protected her.
Wuchun felt bad, and over time, she became a naughty and wild person who pretended to be well-behaved in front of others.
It was easy for her to shed a few tears and act innocent and wronged.
Speaking of Wulei, Wuchun actually felt guilty. In her
previous life, she would receive letters from her brother every few months. After all, her sister married far away, and as a brother, she could not rest assured, fearing that she would suffer the slightest grievance.
Wu Chun would reply to Shen Sui's letters in the first one or two years after she married him, but later on, she replied less and less, because after not seeing each other for a long time, even the strongest feelings would fade. Wu Chun was devoted to Shen Sui, and when she saw the letter from Wu Lei, she thought to put it aside for the time being and reply later. After a while, she forgot about replying the letter.
Over time, the correspondence became less and less.
The last news Wu Chun heard about Wu Lei in his previous life was the news of his death!
He married a wife, but that wife was planted by the Yue clan. On the wedding night, Wu Lei was poisoned to death by a cup of poisoned wine.
Wu Chun, who was far away in Daliang, could only look at the dusty letter in the corner and burst into tears.
Images of Wu Lei came to my mind...
My brother took me to fish in the water with my pants rolled up. She slipped once and he let her sit on the shore and wait for him to catch fish.
He let her sit on his shoulders to watch the actors singing. There were people in front of him and he was blocked, but he smiled and said, "It's good that you saw it."
When Yue Shi whipped her with a whip, he knelt in front of her and said, "With my brother here, if my sister is wronged, wouldn't it be a disgrace to my brother?"
But such a sincere and simple person did not have a good ending.
Lovers die tragically, and ruthless people become emperors. Is the world so cruel?
In the previous life, I didn't even see my brother for the last time. In this life, I must leave Daliang early and see my brother, and... I must make Yue Shi suffer!
Wu Chun opened the letter and saw the familiar handwriting. She felt as if she was in another world. The letter included Wu Lei's greetings to her, recent anecdotes in Southern Xinjiang, and...
her birthday.
If Wu Lei hadn't written the letter, she would have almost forgotten that her seventeenth birthday was coming in half a month.
Another small package came with the letter. After opening a layer of oil paper, there was a bulging red and blue cloth bag inside. Before untying the rope, she could already smell a sweet fragrance. When she opened it again, it was a bag full of Bobo Su.
Bobo Su is a sweet candy unique to the Southern Xinjiang Palace. Daliang can't eat it, but Wu Chun has loved it since she was a child, so Wu Lei brought it over.
Wu Chun felt warm inside. She ate a piece of Bobosu. The pastry and powder melted in her mouth. The familiar sweet but not greasy taste of malt sugar filled her mouth. She almost shed tears...
She hadn't been back to Southern Xinjiang for a long time.
In her previous life, she had begged Shen Sui to find Bobosu for her. The result was predictable. He didn't care. He agreed casually and then left without any further affairs. Wu Chun was afraid that he would be unhappy, so she never mentioned it again. Wu Chun
didn't eat much of the bag of Bobosu. She tied the bag again and sat by the window to write back to Wu Lei. As she was writing, a plan suddenly came to her mind.
She had no connections or contacts after leaving the Daliang Palace. It was especially difficult for her to do something or get something. Since her brother could send some things from Southern Xinjiang to Daliang, why not let her brother help her?
Wu Chun changed his tone, first describing his expectations, then his loss around Shen Sui, the boredom of life in the palace, and the difficulties faced by the people of Daliang. Finally, he mentioned that if he wanted to gain a foothold in the Daliang Palace, he needed some self-defense skills, so he listed the materials and herbs he had already thought of.
At the end of the letter, he added in a half-coquettish tone: If my brother wants to marry, he must wait until my sister has met my sister-in-law. I can't bear to give such a good brother to others.
After doing all this, Wu Chun finally felt that he was not isolated and helpless.
Shen Sui was transferred to the Dali Temple. He had a case on his hands recently, so he was busy. He left the Yuning Palace and it was unknown how long he would be back.
Wu Chun remembered that Shen Sui was also investigating the case at this time in his previous life. This case seemed to have been investigated for quite a long time. After all, it was related to a deceased concubine Xie Ruanruan sixteen years ago and the Xie family who were extremely rebellious and wanted to rebel.
...
Speaking of the Xie family, most people sighed.
In those days, the Xie family was one of the most famous families in the capital of Daliang. Xie Qingzhi, the Marquis of Ding'an, won many victories for Daliang. Unfortunately, he later developed a rebellious heart and failed to raise troops to rebel, and the whole family was destroyed.
In order to warn the world and set an example, the emperor specially built a white tower in the palace. When the weather was clear, you could see it from a high place in the palace. Inside were the ashes of more than a hundred people from the Xie family, all of whom were labeled as traitors and traitors.
The white tower was named: Zhaotian.
Let the world know that the Xie family was disloyal and suffered such a fate. Who dares to rebel again?
The White Tower was where Wu Chun was shot to death by random arrows in his previous life!
As for why there were more than 500 people in the Xie family, but only more than 100 ashes were found in the tower, it was because a fire broke out in Taicang Mountain that year, and all the Xie family soldiers were burned to death here. The fire covered 300 miles, and it was already impossible to tell which were the broken bones and which were the scorched earth!
For the next ten years, no grass grew on Mount Taicang. Because so many people died, it was considered an ominous place. No one was around within a hundred miles.
The events of the Xie family were almost a thorn in the emperor's heart. But not long ago, someone reported that there was something fishy about the death of Xie Ruanruan.
The emperor saw the memorial and was furious. He swept all the books on the table to the ground.
The person who reported was Jiang Xuanning, the newly appointed Shaoqing of the Dali Temple. He had no connection with the Xie family, and was known for his integrity. He had once received three thousand taels of silver from corrupt officials.
It would have been better if he hadn't mentioned it. Since it was mentioned, if the emperor didn't care, he would appear to be unkind. He had no choice but to turn over the old case.
This was a hot potato that everyone knew.
After all, the case proposed by Jiang Xuanning must have some strangeness, but if it turns out that Xie Ruanruan's death was not as recorded in the case file, wouldn't it be a slap in the emperor's face?
In order to show his willingness to clear up the unjust case, the emperor asked Shen Sui to resign and assist the Dali Temple in the trial. And Shen Sui is indeed a suitable candidate. As a prince, he was still young and was raised in Qingzhou.
Wu Chun was really happy!
Shen Sui was busy with official duties, so she could live happily in Yuning Palace!
...
If you think about it carefully, Shen Sui has some good points.
There are no concubines, and there are few servants in the palace. As for personal maids, there have never been any. The Yuning Palace was empty, and Wu Chun had fewer annoying fights.
Besides, Shen Sui was a madman, and he himself was not a man who followed the rules. Sometimes when Wu Chun went beyond the rules, he would not punish her.
In her previous life, on her birthday, she always hoped that Shen Sui would ask her about her well-being even if he did not give her a birthday gift, but nothing happened.
Her birthday was just an ordinary day in spring.
Shen Sui probably never remembered it.
On her eighteenth birthday in her previous life, she dressed up, stood under the pear tree, rested her head on his chest, heard his heartbeat as steady as usual, a tear was about to fall in her eyes, and she said with red eyes: "Your Highness is free today, can you accompany Ah Chun?"
Shen Sui agreed.
Wu Chun was so happy that she almost jumped up to the height of two meters.
She plucked up her courage and said that she wanted to watch Miss Mingyue dance in Huayue Tower, and Shen Sui took her away from the sight of the palace people; she said that she wanted to eat the fried dough with scallions from the folks in Daliang, and Shen Sui did not call her a rough country woman;
that day, she saw the red and white spring flowers all over the field outside the palace, the willow branches greened the river bank, and the spring breeze dyed the winter jasmine yellow...
She thought Shen Sui knew it was her birthday at that time.
But until the night of that day, she had never heard him say "Happy Birthday".
He was just being a good husband. Even if it was another day, if she begged like this, he would agree if he was in a good mood.
So when she was 19 years old, Wu Chun was very well-behaved. She did not make any requests, and Shen Sui just treated it as an ordinary day.
When she was twenty years old, Shen Sui was at the critical juncture of launching a rebellion. Not to mention celebrating her birthday, he even saw her very rarely. After
being married for four years, Shen Sui only celebrated her birthday with her when she was eighteen. She
sat by the window for a long time, and her shoulders were covered with blood. Jing Lian called her with water to wash her face, and she came to her senses.
Wu Chun put all these things behind her.
Now that she is reborn, she must be carefree! She didn't have a good birthday before, so she must make up for it in this life!
So half a month later, Wu Chun collected a lot of red candles and borrowed a few musicians and dancers from Shen Ying.
On the night of his birthday, the tree in Fengchun Palace was hung with red candles, which made the snow-white pear blossoms look pink. From a distance, it looked like clouds falling from the sky. The palace was brightly lit.
The gate of Yuning Palace was closed, and several palace maids were guarding, watching out for Xue Shangyi who occasionally came to see Wuchun.
Wuchun wore a red dress unique to southern Xinjiang, and silver bells were tied on her wrists and ankles with red silk threads. Her lotus steps made clear sounds, and she danced with the dancers in Fengchun Palace. Her slender waist was graceful, like the swaying of willows, her eyes were full of spirits, and she was dazzling and brilliant, overwhelming all the dancers in the palace.
People in southern Xinjiang are good at dancing and singing.
Wuchun asked Jinglian and Yuli to pour wine. Wuchun drank the small cup in one gulp, and then simply took the wine pot and poured it to her mouth. Soon, her cheeks were rosy, like a pink and cute crabapple. She
thought Fengchun Palace was not spacious enough, so she simply found a ladder, removed the tiles, and sat on the roof of Fengchun Palace. The palace
maids below were frightened and stretched out their arms, fearing that the prince's wife would fall down if she was not careful. They couldn't afford it!
Wu Chun said to the musicians in the yard, "You just play the piano down there," and then pointed at the dancers, "You continue to dance for me. There are red candles burning in the yard. Be careful."
Who wouldn't say that this is insolent? !
Wu Chun didn't think so.
What a life she had lived in her previous life. If she can't be happy in this life, she might as well not live at all.
She squinted her almond eyes slightly, and the gentle spring evening breeze blew on her body, making her drowsy. The bright silver moonlight swirled on her red dress, and seemed to become charming.
After watching for a while, she closed her eyes, supported her head with one hand, and let her sleeves fall, revealing her white wrists with silver bracelets and red strings.
Red candles were hung high, silk and bamboo were playing in formation, a faint smell of alcohol lingered, and under the moon, a drunken girl in red was sitting on the eaves.
Shen Sui frowned as he entered the Yuning Palace, and this was the scene he saw.
"Your Highness is back!"
As soon as Shen Sui appeared, it seemed as if invisible hands were strangling everyone's necks, and sharp blades were hanging above their heads.
The singing and laughter immediately disappeared like smoke.
I don't know what happened to the Third Prince. He was clearly on a business trip. According to his style, he should not have come back for a long time, but he chose to return to the palace today and ran into the prince's wife making such a fuss.
It's bad!
The servants knelt in the courtyard.
The music stopped abruptly.
Wuchun's eyelashes fluttered, and she opened her eyes dazedly, saying, "What's wrong?"
Jinglian and Yuli called out timidly from below, "Your Highness, Your Highness..."
But the people up there couldn't hear them.
Instead, she grinned, pointed at Shen Sui with her slender jade finger, and said, "You're new here, sing a few lines for me."
The moon was behind the girl, the silver bell on her wrist shone in the moonlight, her red lips were like fire, her smile was open and unrestrained, and it also had a bit of childish arrogance and meanness. The charm that was unique to the girls of southern Xinjiang was generously revealed from the red on her ears and cheeks.
As bright as the sun.
Shen Sui had never seen Wu Chun like this before.
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