Chapter 407 Brother and Sister Dispute
After hearing what Zhaohua said, Xiao Yinzi left in silence.
After he left, Yunshan waited for Zhaohua to go back to the inner chamber to rest.
After the yellow pear wood door of the inner bedroom was closed and only the master and servant were left, she asked in confusion:
"I am a little confused about what happened today. Miss originally intended to win over Xiao Yinzi, but now Xiao Yinzi is rushing to surrender to Miss, why is Miss putting on such a show in front of him?"
In fact, since early this morning, when Zhaohua had not yet moved from Changle Palace to Fengluan Palace, she already knew that Xiao Yinzi would come today.
Xiao Zhuozi from the Imperial Household Department had been bribed by Xiao Fuzi early on and became a spy planted by Zhao Hua in the Imperial Household Department.
After Xiao Zhuozi delivered the news to Changle Palace in advance, Zhaohua had this plan in mind.
If Xiao Yinzi really surrenders today, she will put on a good show for him with drums and gongs.
But if he acts impartially and doesn't say a word, Zhaohua will naturally stop making trouble and greet him with a smile.
At this moment, Zhaohua leaned on the Xiangfei couch, took a silver fork, picked up a peeled and pitted lychee, and chewed it gently between his lips.
"The purpose of this play is very simple. First, it is to make him see clearly that if he makes a mistake in front of the emperor, the emperor will execute him. But if he makes a mistake in front of me, I will find a way to protect him. Secondly, it is to create a rift between him and Jiang Deshun.
Think about it, Jiang Deshun is loyal to the emperor. Even if he retires in the future, he will still live in the capital, and he will inevitably have to give Xiao Yinzi a lot of instructions. Xiao Yinzi is very filial to this master and has always treated him with sincerity. But if he first feels that Jiang Deshun is not sincere to him, guess how much of his filial piety will be left?"
After hearing this, Yunshan nodded thoughtfully.
"So that's how it is... Miss just explained to Xiao Yinzi the principle that a loyal servant should not serve two masters. In your opinion, will Xiao Yinzi become our confidant in the future?"
Zhao Hua smiled lightly and said, "That depends on whether he is a smart person."
*
With Shang Yang's death, Zhao Hua was crowned queen.
There is no one in this harem who has the ability to stir up trouble anymore.
Even if Concubine Yun and Ruchang are so restless, they can only make trouble in their own little piece of land and can't create any huge waves.
April 13th is the day for the Silkworm Ceremony.
Early in the morning of that day, Zhao Hua led the concubines of the harem and above to the northern suburbs of Kyoto to hold a silkworm ceremony at the Xiancan Altar.
When they came, the wives of the ministers and the women of the wealthy silkworm families in Kyoto were all in line.
When they saw Zhaohua, they all bowed respectfully.
"I, the humble servant, pay my respects to Her Majesty the Queen. May Her Majesty be blessed with good health and good health."
Zhao Hua smiled and raised his hand to tell them to stand up, then said gently:
"The silkworm-weaving ceremony was supposed to be held in early March, but I was about to give birth and couldn't spare the time, so it was delayed for a long time."
"It has been four years since the capital held the Silkworm Ceremony. Now that the Empress is here in person, I believe that the farming and sericulture in the Qi Dynasty will be fruitful next year."
The person who was speaking was a representative of all the silkworm women. Although she spoke flattering words, it was not difficult to tell from the lingering sadness between her brows and the simple clothes she wore that she was a typical silkworm woman.
Even the largest households can only maintain the most basic dignity.
It can be seen that this year's insect disaster has indeed dealt a heavy blow to Kyoto's mulberry spinning industry.
Now it is April and although the insect plague has been contained, the best period for silkworm rearing has been missed. I am afraid that this year's Beijing embroidery will not be good enough.
The mulberry farmers rely on this for their livelihood. If an insect plague occurs, in two months, the mulberry farmers in the suburbs of Beijing may not even have food to eat.
However, Zhao Hua did not ask any further questions. After the female official from the Ministry of Rites announced "The grand ceremony has begun", the sound of sacrificial music suddenly began to sound.
According to ancestral rules, at the beginning of the Silkworm Reception Ceremony, the Queen had to enter the Hall of the First Silkworm alone to worship the silkworm goddess Leizu on behalf of all women in the world.
Under everyone's gaze, Zhao Hua slowly stepped into the hall.
Looking up, this Xiancan Hall is not very big, only about half the size of the main hall of Fengluan Palace.
There is a statue of Leizu in the center of the temple, and the rest of the layout is no different from that of an ordinary Buddhist temple.
Zhaohua walked to the statue, first bowed and offered incense, then knelt on the cushion of the Lotus Sutra, closed his eyes and prayed devoutly to the statue.
When the prayer was halfway through,
Zhaohua vaguely heard a slight movement behind the Leizu statue.
But she ignored it and didn't even bother to open her eyelids. She just continued to pray.
Until she heard slow and heavy footsteps approaching her, and the faint scent of avocado mixed with sandalwood filled her nostrils.
After the last bow, she asked in a low voice,
"Brother, how long have I been waiting here?"
After saying that, he raised his eyes and looked to the side.
What came into view was Xiao Jingyan dressed in dark black casual clothes.
He looked at Zhao Hua with deep eyes and said coldly,
"Since you know I will come to see you, you should also know what I am doing."
A faint smile appeared on Zhao Hua's lips, and he turned to Xiao Jingyan and said:
"Since you are here, please lend me a hand to help me up."
It turned out that she didn't need to say it, Xiao Jingyan also felt sorry for his sister.
If not, how could one kneel on the conventional Lotus Sutra cushion as if kneeling on cotton without feeling any burden at all?
After being helped up by Xiao Jingyan, Zhao Hua leisurely adjusted the wrinkles on the hem of his phoenix robe.
Xiao Jingyan said half mockingly: "The queen's dress suits you very well."
Zhao Hua smiled bitterly and said, "With so many shackles on my body, how is it different from my brother's court robes? It is luxurious, but it is not pleasant to wear this golden cage on my body."
"Are you unhappy?" Xiao Jingyan sneered, "I see that now that you have become Xiao Jingheng's legal wife, you are more in tune with him and his wife."
His tone gradually grew colder, and finally, he almost gritted his teeth and said,
"Even the methods are becoming more and more similar."
Zhao Hua quietly watched the sad expression on Xiao Jingyan's face. After a while, he suddenly smiled.
"Why do you say that, brother?"
Xiao Jingyan did not beat around the bush and simply stated the matter clearly.
"Are you aware of the fire in Brother Chen's house and the death of his wife?"
"I've heard of it." Zhao Hua nodded disapprovingly.
Xiao Jingyan's eyes froze, and his hands, which naturally fell by his side, slowly clenched into fists.
"But I had someone send Brother Chen and his wife to Yuncheng. It was impossible for Xiao Jingheng's people to find them in the old house in Hengzhou. So why did they die?"
His voice became increasingly low, with less complaints and more sorrow.
"Brother Chen and his wife have raised Chengyu for so many years. They have done their best. I checked privately and found out that you asked Tianji to bring them back from Yuncheng. Zhao'er... why?"
The complex emotions in Xiao Jingyan's eyes gradually turned into a mist.
"You knew that Xiao Jingheng would kill them, and you knew that sending them back would only end in death! Why did you still do this?"
Zhao Hua saw that Xiao Jingyan was extremely disappointed with her sister and was about to shed tears, but she shook her head and said, "I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Brother, now that things have come to this, I have finally figured out one thing."
"What?"
"I was originally wondering why the late emperor, when he was undecided between the Fourth Master and the Fifth Master, never thought of making you the crown prince? Now I understand..."
Zhao Hua suddenly stood on tiptoe and patted Xiao Jingyan on the shoulder, saying with a joking smile:
"Yes, with your reckless and impetuous character, how can you be suitable to be an emperor?"
Hearing her mockery, Jamel Xiao briefly put away his seriousness, and instead jumped in anger, pointing at her in a slightly funny way, and said angrily:
"Are you cursing again?"
[Xiao Jingyan's inner thoughts: Lin Xiao, you...o(∩_∩)o]
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