Feng Yuheng gave Yun Fei a rough description of the love story between Xiang Rong and the fourth prince Xuan Tianyi, which made Yun Fei nervous for a while. She felt that if she didn't make a move, the daughter-in-law she liked would be snatched away by the fourth prince, so she made a decision on the spot and told Xuan Tianming: "After this New Year, I will arrange a marriage for Hua Er."
Xuan Tianming felt a headache for a while. He asked Yun Fei: "Aren't you afraid that Seventh Brother will be unhappy?"
Concubine Yun waved her hands: "If he didn't want to, he wouldn't hug her. Have you ever seen your seventh brother hug any woman since he was a child?" After saying that, she glanced at Feng Yuheng, and Feng Yuheng was so scared that he shook his head repeatedly, indicating that he had never been hugged. Concubine Yun then said: "So, since the third girl is the first woman Hua'er is willing to hug, it means that this matter has a chance."
Xuan Tianming still felt that it was unreliable. Thinking of that shriveled girl Feng Xiangrong, he shook his head and said, "What's the point of being a woman or not? She's just a child. She hasn't even reached the age of marriage yet!"
"Oh!" Concubine Yun rolled her eyes, "You know I'm a child now? After all, the third girl is fourteen this year. When Ah Heng was only twelve, who was the one who sent the betrothal gifts to Feng Mansion right after returning from the Northwest? Who looted the Yuehan Palace warehouse and took away all my five treasures to please my wife? Now you say the third girl is a child, how can you have the nerve to do that?"
Feng Yuheng held her forehead with her hand. It turned out that all those fine fabrics were obtained from Yuehan Palace. No wonder she was always wondering why Xuan Tianming, a grown man, stored so many five-treasure fabrics?
Xuan Tianming also felt guilty. It was true that Rong was not young anymore. She would be a 15-year-old in a year, so it was important to arrange a marriage as soon as possible. But he just felt that the girl was not compatible with Xuan Tianhua!
The three of them discussed the matter for half the night but could not come to a conclusion. Until they were so sleepy that they went back to their rooms and fell into a deep sleep.
Xuan Tianming felt that he was at a disadvantage. He was just about to "eat meat", but his mother insisted on digging the two of them out of bed to spy on the seventh brother's secrets, which made his wife sleepy and tired. After returning, she fell asleep on the bed and could not be woken up. As a result, his long-planned New Year's Eve dinner had to be abandoned. What a mistake! What a mistake!
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Emperor Tianwu, who had been ill all night, woke up at daybreak. Not only did he wake up, but his condition had also improved greatly, as if the sudden onset of typhoid fever last night had never happened. He looked energetic and his face was glowing. Even the imperial physician who had been guarding the outer hall of Zhaohe Hall all night was amazed when he came in to take the emperor's pulse, and said, "Long live the emperor!"
But Zhang Yuan, who also spent the night with Emperor Tianwu, was somewhat worried about Tianwu's mental state. He always felt that Emperor Tianwu's illness was too fast to recover, which was not in line with common sense. But he couldn't say that. After all, the emperor's recovery was a happy event. How could he pour a basin of cold water on him? So he resisted the doubts and worries in his heart, and he also got up from the ground, took Emperor Tianwu's clothes and prepared to help him change clothes.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Emperor Wu still had to attend an early morning court session, but this early court session was different from the usual ones. The emperor had already sealed the court session long before the Lunar New Year. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, all the ministers went to the palace to wish the emperor a happy new year. It was a kind of worship and they just said some nice words, but they did not discuss state affairs. Even the dragon robe Emperor Wu wore was different from the past. It was not the noble yellow, but a dark red.
Zhang Yuan held up the dragon robe and just shook it off. Before he could ask Emperor Tianwu to change his clothes, he saw a sharp look from Emperor Tianwu. He frowned and blurted out, "Zhang Yuan? Why are you here? Didn't I send you to the Criminal Slave Division a long time ago?"
Zhang Yuan's heart skipped a beat as he had a very bad premonition. He wondered if the old emperor had slept for half the night and had forgotten what happened last night.
As expected, when Emperor Tianwu saw that he was in a trance and didn't say anything, his face became even angrier. He even flicked his sleeves and knocked the dragon robe to the ground, and shouted angrily: "You blocked the carriage of Concubine Shu and almost caused Concubine Shu to die. I didn't chop off your head, but sent you to the Criminal Slave Division. You, a slave, don't repent and dare to come back privately. Do you make the decision on the laws and regulations in this palace?"
Zhang Yuan quickly knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please understand. It was you who summoned me back! Without your order, how could I have stepped out of the Criminal Slave Division?"
"I summoned you back?" Tianwu was furious and shouted, "What a joke! You almost caused Concubine Shu to die tragically. I wanted to kill you, so how could I summon you back? If it weren't for Concubine Shu's magnanimity, you would have died long ago!"
"Your Majesty." Zhang Yuan looked up at him with an unwilling expression, "Your Majesty, have you really forgotten everything after a night's sleep? Forgot that you were talking to me last night? Forgot that you still care about my hands?" He said as he held out the pair of wounded hands again, "Your Majesty, I am your little Yuanzi! How could you forget about me?"
Zhang Yuan's words did cause Emperor Tianwu to ponder for a while. He looked at the eunuch in front of him, wondering if his words were true. But no matter how he thought about it, he couldn't figure out why he was so worried about a slave's hand. Emperor Tianwu thought this was ridiculous, so he wanted to drag Zhang Yuan out and chop him off, but he remembered that today was the first day of the new year, and it was not appropriate to see blood, so he had to settle for the next best thing and shouted, "Come here! Send this slave back to the Criminal Slave Division!"
As soon as these words came out, the chief eunuch Wu Ying hurried in from outside the palace, with an expression of joy that could not be concealed, and directed the two young eunuchs following behind him, one on each side, to carry Zhang Yuan out. At this moment, suddenly the Queen's voice was heard from outside the palace, saying, "Stop!"
Everyone looked outside, and saw the queen, dressed in court clothes, approaching with the aura of a mother of a country. Her steps were steady, her face was solemn, and even her eyes were filled with a dignity that could not be ignored. Wu Ying subconsciously lowered her head, and had to admit in her heart that the majesty of the mother of the country was not something that a small concubine could achieve. Even if Concubine Yuan Shu climbed to a high position one day, she would not be able to exude such a noble aura.
"What is the emperor going to do?" The queen finally stood still in front of Emperor Tianwu, glanced at Zhang Yuan, and said, "Today is the first day of the new year. Even ordinary people know that harmony is the most important thing. Why is the emperor so angry so early in the morning? How can a servant compare to the lifeblood of Dashun? You can't break the rules and ruin Dashun's feng shui because of a servant."
Her words made Emperor Tianwu angry and he didn't know how to refute. He felt that the queen was too bold to speak to him like this, but he also felt that the queen was right. The fate of Dashun was indeed more important. He looked at Zhang Yuan and asked the queen: "Then what do you think should be done with this servant? I can't tolerate him around me."
"Then give it to me!" said the Queen. "I think the servants who served the Emperor in the past were all very well behaved. Since the Emperor doesn't like them anymore, why not give it to me? It just so happens that I am in need of a capable person. The most important thing is to be harmonious on this New Year's Day. I can't let this servant ruin the country's fortune for the whole year."
Emperor Tianwu nodded, did not refuse, and said: "Then let the queen decide!" After that, he flicked his sleeves and strode out of the hall.
The Queen winked at Fang Yi, and then she followed the Emperor's footsteps and hurried out of the palace. Fang Yi helped Zhang Yuan up and whispered, "I'll take you back to Jingci Palace first, and we'll talk about the future slowly. Save your life first."
Zhang Yuan nodded and said nothing more, but he was relieved in his heart. If he was sent back to the Criminal Slave Division, he would probably die there. He finally got out of there, if he went in again, it would mean that his master had completely abandoned him, and the people there would do everything they could to torture him until he died.
In front of the Qiankun Hall, Emperor Tianwu and the Empress got down from the sedan chair together and walked hand in hand. In the eyes of the ministers, this was a beautiful and harmonious picture. The emperor and the empress, who had not appeared together for a long time, still seemed to have a good relationship. This meant that in the coming year, Dashun would have good weather and prosperity.
But no one knew that Tianwu was whispering to the queen at this time: "For today's matter of Zhang Yuan, I will give you some face and a favor. But you should know that this face or favor will not last for a long time. You have been sitting on the throne for so many years, and you should understand how to contribute to Dashun. The person I am waiting for will soon appear, right?"
The Queen paused. Although others could not see it, she knew it herself. Her legs were weak and the hand held by Emperor Tianwu was shaking. But she still said firmly: "I have known for a long time that the Emperor knows everything in his heart. I have never really wanted to hide it from the Emperor. It's just that I have been in the palace for so many years. Even if I have no merit, I have worked hard. Even if the Emperor does not care about the relationship between husband and wife, he should remember the friendship of cooperation over the years. The Emperor knows that I am just a chess piece and harmless to Dashun. Even if he comes to the door, I will not cooperate with him to do anything that will harm Dashun. I will just wait in the palace until he comes, and then let the Emperor catch him in one fell swoop. After catching him, I will truly sit on the position of Queen. But..." She paused, and then said: "As long as I am in power, I will be the Queen. Even if the Emperor is acting, he must play the role to the fullest."
"Hmph!" Emperor Tianwu grunted and stopped talking.
The emperor and empress took their seats, and the civil and military officials began to celebrate the first day of the new year. It was grand, but everyone had their own concerns, and the only concern was Emperor Tianwu. People from all parties were watching, not only watching the old emperor's joys and sorrows, but most importantly, watching his mental state. I heard that he had contracted typhoid fever again last night, but I don't know if he is really well now, or just pretending. If he is pretending, how long can this old emperor pretend?
Outside the palace, Feng Yuheng got up when Xuan Tianming went to court, and left Prince Chun's Mansion and returned to Prince Yu's Mansion. After all, there was a palace banquet today, so she had to go back to the mansion to change her clothes and put on makeup. At the same time, it was the first day of the new year, and she had to accept the New Year's greetings from the servants of the mansion and distribute red envelopes. Xiangrong made an appointment with her to meet at the palace gate in the evening. She thought of what she discussed with Concubine Yun last night, but she didn't know whether to be happy or worried for this girl.
Will Xiangrong really be happy if she marries the Seventh Prince?
(As the book enters the second half, the plot focuses more on the big background, and everyone's fate will be determined little by little later, so there will be occasional small and big abuses. However, the ending must be beautiful, and the abuse is only temporary, and it will soon turn around. When Emperor Tianwu recovers, it will be the time when the Eighth Prince and Concubine Yuan Shu are in trouble, and they will not have a good ending. In addition, the relationship between Xiangrong and the Seventh Prince is definitely not what we see now. There will be many twists and turns in the subsequent plot. The plot of the second half is complicated, and everything will be revealed in the finale)
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