The old temple on top of Confucius Temple is now in ruins.
In this ruin, a clean area was cleared out, and on the ground was an exquisite round table with food and wine on it.
There were three fireplaces next to the round table, but only two people were sitting there.
They are the eldest prince Yu Wentian and the fourth prince Yu Wenshu.
At this moment, Yu Wenshu lit the stove on the table, poured the wine into the copper vessel, placed it on the stove to warm the wine, and said calmly: "What a pity there is no snow."
“But there is the moon.”
"...Snow is still the best, just like what Fu Xiaoguan did in March Alley, enjoying the snow and drinking wine. It must have been wonderful."
"Fourth brother, the city gates are sealed tonight, yet you seem quite free. This place is not only desolate, but also very windy. I just wanted to ask you, do you really want to cause chaos in Shangjing?"
The fourth prince raised his lips, and his eyes narrowed slightly. He took the wine and filled the eldest prince's glass, saying, "I didn't do this."
"I can't think of anyone else except you."
"Come on, come on, we've been brothers for six years now, and we haven't had a drink together like this in six years. As your younger brother, I'd like to toast you!"
Yu Wentian raised his glass and clinked it with Yu Wenshu's, then drank it all in one gulp and looked at Yu Wenshu again.
"I think my eldest brother has misunderstood me. Although we have some conflicts, I wouldn't mess up the capital too much. It would be too troublesome to clean up the mess. Besides, there isn't much silver in the treasury right now."
Yu Wentian frowned and asked again, "Then who do you think did it?"
"Apart from Fu Xiaoguan, I can't think of anyone else who can do such a thing!"
Yu Wentian's brow furrowed even more tightly. "Mr. Fu? What's the reason?"
Yu Wenshu laughed heartily. "Brother, it seems you still know too little about Fu Xiaoguan. He acts with unbridled imagination, so why would he need a reason? If I had to give a reason..." Yu Wenshu raised his eyebrows and poured two more glasses of wine. "I think he just wanted to show it to Father."
"Isn't he afraid of making a big mistake?"
"From what I know about him, he's not afraid of any mishaps. Otherwise, how could he have done something like the bloodbath that covered five miles of streets? How could he have killed someone in an alley in March while enjoying a glass of wine and watching the snow?"
Yu Wenshu's face darkened. "To be honest, big brother, one of my men died and twenty were injured or disabled in March Alley. It was all thanks to Fu Xiaoguan."
Yu Wentian was silent for a few breaths before asking, "Since you don't want to use this opportunity to cause chaos in the capital, then why did you secretly mobilize the twelve masters from Yuhuatai?"
Yu Wenshu smiled again, "It seems that Big Brother is not as simple as he seems. Come, let's drink three more cups together, and then I will tell you what I will do."
After three cups of wine, Yu Wenshu's long hair danced wildly in the night wind.
"Of course I'm going to kill the twenty men who are imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice."
Yu Wentian was shocked. "Aren't you afraid of being exposed?"
"The east wind is blowing beautifully tonight, so let's kill some people, drink some wine, and reminisce about the past. Why bother overthinking things? Big Brother, isn't that right?"
"You're just a lunatic!"
"No, no, no, I've found someone even crazier than me."
"Official Fu?"
Yu Wentian chuckled and didn't answer. Instead, he suddenly said, "Brother, I'm afraid the Eastern Frontier Army will take up a lot of your energy. Do you really want to go?"
“This is my ambition, why not go?”
Yu Wenshu nodded slightly, "Yes, ambition!" He stood up, walked out of this clean area, stepped on a broken statue on the ground, looked up at the bright moon, then bent down, picked up a stone and threw it out angrily. His face suddenly became ferocious. Looking at the still brilliant Jinling City below the mountain, he roared: "Fuck my ambition!"
He turned around and stared at Yu Wentian fiercely, "Come, come, come and look at this fire tree and silver flower. Come and see if it is really as beautiful as it appears."
"It's already this fucking hour, and you're telling me about ambitions! The court is full of treacherous ministers, and that witch in the harem is committing evil. Father thinks he knows everything, that he can control everything. But does he really know everything? Can he really control everything? Bullshit! Bullshit! Shit! Even more disgusting than shit!"
"Yu Wenshu!" The eldest prince also stood up, and even put his hand on the hilt of the sword.
"You want to kill me? Come on!" Yu Wenshu pointed his finger at Yu Wentian. "Let me ask you, do you know how your mother died? Do you know how many years have passed since the Taihe era of prosperity, but the treasury is so empty that even rats won't go in! Do you know that the Yu Dynasty is now in a precarious situation? Do you know that if I hadn't sent people to the Yi Kingdom to lobby them, the Yi Kingdom would have attacked us long ago!"
"Your ambition... is really good!" Yu Wenshu's voice became low, and he seemed very tired. He sat down on the head of the statue.
"You've lost your mind!" Yu Wentian walked over and stared down at Yu Wenshu. "The Imperial Hospital has detailed records of my mother's death. Don't talk nonsense just because you had a few drinks!"
"As for the treasury deficit, the Yu Dynasty has been extremely unlucky over the past few years. This is a natural disaster, not my father's fault. Also, I want to tell you that if it weren't for Concubine Shang presiding over the situation, the Yu Dynasty would have collapsed long ago. Although she is not my biological mother, and although I rarely visit her, I still admire her and will not tolerate you slandering her behind her back!"
Yu Wentian also stretched out his hand and pointed at Yu Wenshu: "For the sake of you being my brother, you must remember this. This is just this once. If I hear you talking nonsense again, I will have to teach you the Three Guiyuan Swords!"
"It's not your turn to worry about this country. If you can avoid causing any trouble, that would be better than anything else!"
"You...take care of yourself!"
Yu Wentian turned and left, disappearing on top of the Confucius Temple.
Yu Wenshu did not look back. He was still looking at Jinxiu at the foot of the mountain. Suddenly, he smiled silently. His beautiful face became more and more enchanting, but there were tears in his eyes.
"Fu Xiaoguan, you're almost dead!"
He murmured, but his words were blown away by the mountain wind.
…
…
The harem of the Dayu Imperial City, the Cining Palace.
A group of concubines, led by Concubine Shang, knelt in the room.
Sandalwood was burning inside, and the windows were not opened. In addition, there were stoves burning everywhere, so the air in the Cining Palace was very turbid.
The bamboo curtain of the Fragrant Concubine has not been opened yet, and the imperial physician who entered has long been driven out, and is now waiting at the door with his hands bowed.
An old eunuch lifted the bamboo curtain and hurried over to the group of concubines. He knelt beside Concubine Shang and whispered, "The Empress Dowager wants to see you."
Concubine Shang stood up and followed the old eunuch into the inner palace.
Emperor Yu Yin was sitting in front of the bed at this moment, while Yu Wenyun was sitting at the foot of the bed.
Concubine Shang's heart skipped a beat. She walked lightly to the bedside and asked in a low voice, "Mother, are you feeling better?"
The Queen Mother opened her cloudy eyes with some difficulty and coughed violently a few times, "Come, sit here."
Yu Yin moved aside, and Concubine Shang sat at the head of the bed, reaching out and holding the withered hand.
"Mother, let's talk when we're better. When spring comes, I'll take you to the Nanshan Villa. There's the peach tree you planted yourself. By then, the peach blossoms will be in bloom. I'll invite Miss Susu from the Taoist temple. I heard that her zither music can attract hundreds of birds to pay their respects. I imagine the scenery there will be magnificent."
There was a glimmer in the empress dowager's eyes, as if she was thinking of the Nanshan Villa.
When she was young, she and the late emperor planted many peach trees in the courtyard of the Nanshan Villa. Three years later, the peach forest became bustling in March.
Those white, pink and red flowers will attract bees and butterflies, which dance among the flowers, showing the beauty of spring.
However, this spring is already out of reach.
She tried to smile, but the loose muscles on her face twitched twice and she didn't laugh in the end.
"Fu Xiaoguan, very good. From now on... you must help him more."
"Yes!" Concubine Shang nodded.
"Of all the gifts I received on my birthday, only Fu Xiaoguan's gift made me happy."
"This harem cannot be left without a master for a day. After I leave, you must ascend the throne of empress, manage the harem, and share the worries of His Majesty."
"Wenyun is a very discerning child. Grandma wants to see you and Fu Xiaoguan get married... but I'm afraid I won't be able to see it."
"No, grandma, you must see this, I won't let you go!" Yu Wenjun burst into tears, and the concubine Bin outside was so scared that her face turned pale.
"You silly girl... Grandma is seventy years old and has lived enough. It's time to go and accompany your royal grandfather... Grandma will give the Nanshan Villa to you..."
The old empress dowager's voice became increasingly weaker and weaker. She stretched out her other hand tremblingly, and Yu Wenjun quickly grasped it, "Help me... up..."
Concubine Shang and Yu Wenyun helped the old empress dowager up.
"Change my clothes...put on that red robe...embroidered with peach blossoms."
"Grandma, what are you doing..."
"I need to get some fresh air. It's too stuffy in here. Isn't today the Lantern Festival? Oh, and... Lan Ting Ji... has Fu Xiaoguan... written any good poems?"
Yu Yin turned around and whispered something to the old eunuch beside him. The old eunuch walked out the door and broke the window.
"Please wait, mother. I have already sent someone to Lanting Collection to retrieve Fu Xiaoguan's poem."
"Okay... I must wait."
Yan Beixi and his group, who were kneeling outside the Cining Palace, felt increasingly cold in their hearts. His Majesty had not come out for such a long time, and the concubines who were kneeling inside did not make any movement. Even the imperial physician had not come out.
Something big is going to happen!
Yan Beixi stood up without hesitation, left the Cining Palace, and ran quickly towards the Council of State.
The old empress dowager came out in a red dress, supported by Concubine Shang and Yu Wenjun.
"Everyone, get up."
She just glanced at the concubines and was about to leave.
"It's cold outside."
"No problem, go to Qifeng Pavilion."
Qifeng Pavilion is five stories high. Standing on the top of the pavilion, the old empress dowager asked Yu Wenyun to open the window.
The night wind blew away the white hair on her forehead. She opened her eyes wide and looked outside. This was the city of Jinling, with thousands of trees in bloom. It was so beautiful.
She finally laughed, "Wenyun... outside the Nanshan Villa... there's a field... Grandma reclaimed it back then... and asked Fu Xiaoguan... to plant some rice seeds... in that field... Grandma... wanted to see what it would look like if one acre of land produced 500 to 600 kilograms... "
When a bell rang, Yan Beixi's heart trembled, and a drop of thick ink fell from the tip of his pen.
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