132. Queen

On the third day of the eleventh month, due to chaos on the border, Marquis Dingbei led his troops out of the capital.

The Regent Prince personally escorted him to the city gate. After they parted, he climbed up the Gaosong city tower and stayed there, letting the cold wind blow on his face. Looking far into the distance, he could still see the dark cloud-like shadows of the Jinbei Iron Cavalry.

"Prince." Yun Chu said softly, "They have gone far away, let's go back."

Rong Se clenched his fingertips and looked into the distance with eyes as calm as still water.

Yun Chu couldn't tell whether he was happy or angry, but she felt that he was a little sad at the moment, so she whispered to comfort him, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Dingbei Hou has fought the Xiongnu for so many years, and he will definitely be able to successfully repel the enemy and return victoriously."

"Yes." Rong Se's soft voice melted into the wind, the ending tone was too light, it seemed a little ethereal, like a response, but more like he was talking to himself, "He is the God of War."

Yun Chu agreed: "Yes, Dingbei Hou has been through many battles, he will be fine."

Rong Se was silent for a moment and said, "I know."

Having said this, he turned around calmly, his expression suddenly becoming resolute and stern, as if he had instantly put on an indestructible coat, and walked calmly and resolutely against the wind.

"Let's go."

Rong Se knew that Liang Shenyu was doing what he should do, and he also had things he should do.

It had been less than half a month since the Tongxian earthquake, and the situation in the capital still needed him to stabilize. Before Liang Shenyu returned, there could not be any major chaos in the capital.

Without Liang Shenyu, Rongse would have no one to rely on and would have to read the piles of memorials by himself. Fortunately, with Liang Shenyu's hands-on guidance during this period, Rongse has evolved from a rookie who had to consider the word "read" for a long time at the beginning to an expert who can discern the intentions of officials and whether the things they proposed are reasonable or not.

After finishing reading the last memorial, Rong Se rubbed his sore shoulders and looked up at the paper lantern on the table.

The night pearl emitted a soft light in the lantern, which shone through the bright paper, making the words on it clear.

On the first night Liang Shenyu left, Rong Se put out this lantern. It was written with his longing for his family and it was also a lantern left for them to leave.

As long as it is there, those who travel far away will eventually return.

In the following days, Rong Se went to court as usual, or discussed matters with court officials. There was no new news from the border for the time being, but a big event happened in the capital. Cao Lun claimed that the palace had no master, so natural disasters occurred frequently, and he used the earthquake in Tong County to make Rong Jing a queen.

The candidate was Hou Qingxia, the granddaughter of Minister of War Luo Kui and the younger sister of Hou Peihu.

The Xuanji Camp seemed to be following Cao Lun's orders, but there were other sons of aristocratic families among them. Cao Lun's actions were a precursor to the external relatives seizing power, but Rong Jing agreed. He was indeed old enough that other people of his age would have their children running around.

As a last resort, Rong Se had to agree to the marriage, but using the unrest on the border and the earthquake in Tong County as an excuse, he ordered that the ceremony of crowning the queen be kept simple.

That day he also saw Hou Qingxia, the daughter of a military family. She was indeed dignified, virtuous, and beautiful, and worthy of the position of empress.

It's a pity for the man she married.

The Hou family's plan was doomed to fail, and Rong Jing was naturally not the kind of man to entrust one's life to. Rong Se even felt a little sorry for this girl. She looked like a good girl, it was really a pity.

As Rong Jing ordered, the ceremony of enthroning the empress was extremely simple, and even the clothes worn by the emperor and empress were not as luxurious and exquisite as before.

But no one took the ceremony seriously.

They all just need Hou Qingxia as the queen, as long as they have the title.

That night, the palace held another banquet, and the ceremony was more shabby than ever before. Rong Jing married a virtuous wife, but he was unwilling to do so. He did not like women, any woman, not even his mother.

Empress Dowager Cao, the former empress, saw with her own eyes how his father was intimate with the slut Yan Shuang, and he also saw the several lovers his mother secretly kept. He still feels sick when he thinks about it.

No matter how beautiful Hou Qingxia was, Rong Jing felt very uncomfortable when he sat next to her, but he still had to keep smiling. During the meal, he finally couldn't help but toast to Rong Se, saying something with an inexplicable meaning: "I have a great joy to share with you, and I have to thank the emperor's uncle for making it happen."

Rong Se thought to himself that this was not a big deal. The wedding was handled as subdued as a funeral. He was too lazy to even smile. He nodded lightly and raised his glass to indicate, "A gentleman has helped others to achieve their goals. Congratulations to Your Majesty."

Then he took a sip of wine, his attitude becoming extremely casual.

Rong Jing stared at him with malice in his eyes, and said, "Today is an auspicious day. The emperor's uncle has not yet married. As a junior, I am very worried. Why not take advantage of this auspicious day to choose a princess for the emperor's uncle? What do you think?"

He wanted to see if Liang Shenyu could still help him wholeheartedly after learning that Rong Se had married.

As soon as these words were spoken, all the ministers recalled the request made by the Regent some time ago and fell silent.

There is no such person as the Regent wants!

Rong Se smiled nonchalantly and said, "No need. I don't have the intention yet. Besides..." He glanced at Rong Jing mockingly and chuckled, "I am not the emperor. Whether I marry a wife or not has nothing to do with the fate of the country or natural disasters. If marrying a wife can make Dajin prosperous, I would not mind marrying eight or ten of them. But since it is useless, there is no need to waste my energy and delay the good girl."

He said something very aggressive and almost called out Rong Jing for making trouble.

Rong Jing was embarrassed and wanted to say something else, but Rong Se stood up without any greeting and said calmly, "It's getting late. I am not like Your Majesty who has no time for pleasure. I still have official business in the palace. I will take my leave first."

Having said this, he walked away in front of the officials and Rong Zhan, the prince, who was his relative.

Rong Jing's face looked extremely ugly for a moment.

The court officials who were of the same lineage as the Regent King exchanged glances with each other, and soon took their leave one by one.

In a palace banquet, Rong Jing should be the protagonist, but Rong Se didn't buy it at all and left neatly, making it difficult for the emperor to get off the stage.

The newly appointed empress was considerate. She followed Yu back to Zhaoyang Palace and gently tried to untie the emperor's clothes.

But before the slender jade fingers could touch it, Rong Jing dodged it as if avoiding something dirty.

Hou Qingxia was stunned and asked in confusion: "Your Majesty?"

"...I'll come by myself." Rong Jing couldn't help but look at Hou Qingxia, but he didn't do anything. He looked at her for a moment, then looked away and said, "I'm tired today. Your Majesty, please go back to your own palace. Fengning Palace has been prepared for you."

Hou Qingxia couldn't smile when she was kicked out of the bedroom by her husband on the first day of marriage. Her face was a little livid. She said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty kicked me out the night you crowned me as queen. Do you hate me so much?"

She couldn't afford to lose face, even though she knew that her position as queen was bought with benefits. But how unfavored a woman would be despised by her husband on her wedding night and not want to sleep with him on the same bed?

Rong Jing couldn't afford to offend the queen, but he couldn't bear to sleep in the same bed with her. His face changed for a while before he slowed down his tone and said, "I am really tired. If the queen doesn't want to go back to Fengning Palace, it's really late and it's inconvenient to move. Then you can stay in Zhaoyang Palace and I will sleep in the side hall."

Having said that, without paying any attention to Hou Qingxia's look of disbelief, he turned around and left in a hurry.

As soon as he left, the maid who was waiting outside came in hurriedly and asked anxiously, "Madam, why did His Majesty leave?"

Hou Qingxia sat at the table, holding the edge with her hands, with a grim look on her face.

"How would I know?" Hou Qingxia pounded her fist on the table, gritted her teeth and said, enduring the humiliation, "Don't tell my father and brother yet. I'll wait a few days and see what's going on with this emperor."

Hou Qingxia is not stupid, there is obviously something wrong with the emperor's behavior.

Before marrying into the palace, he had heard that the emperor neither married nor took concubines, and was extremely chaste. The harem was empty, and even the palace maids had never heard of him favoring anyone. Because of this, Hou Qingxia knew that she was the one who truly called the shots in the harem, the only empress, and she didn't even have to deal with those concubines who competed for her favor.

If she wants to keep this position, she must first gain a foothold in the palace.

The maid nodded and whispered, "But on this wedding night, His Majesty just went out, and many people saw it... I'm afraid it can't be kept secret."

"What can we do?" Hou Qingxia said bitterly, "Try to block the news. The fewer people who know about it, the better."

Dowry nodded repeatedly.

But no matter how hard they tried to stop it, there was no impenetrable wall in the palace, and the next day the news spread that the emperor had left his wife on their wedding night and went to sleep in a side hall.

Rong Se was not surprised when he found out.

He doesn't think that a man like Rong Jing is sincere. He has had no one around him these years, presumably because he doesn't dare. Gay sex is not accepted in Dajin. Rong Jing cares so much about his reputation and is happy to create the false image of hypocritical kindness and gentleness in front of the aristocratic families. How could he allow himself to be stained with such a stain?

As for women, he might really be not good enough.

"Let him be." Rong Se didn't care. "It has nothing to do with us. Yun Chu, are there any moves from Jinbei Iron Cavalry and Qiangzhou?"

"No." Yun Chu shook his head. "The Xiongnu troops in Qiangzhou have been slow to attack. It's as if... they are waiting for Dingbei Hou to come."

Rong Se looked at the softly glowing paper lantern on the table and nodded slightly: "Tell me when you have news."

Communication was inconvenient in ancient times. He hasn't received even a letter from Liang Shenyu until now. Rong Se really hates this era of slow transportation, slow horses, and slow news.

I miss my cell phone so much.

"well."

Rong Se couldn't help but sigh, feeling suffocated, so he simply stood up and opened the window, letting the cold wind blow over his face, blowing away some of his anxiety. The sun was shining brightly, the sky was blue, Rong Se's eyes reflected the vast mountains and rivers, and he looked far into the northwest. Under the blue sky, the snow was cold, and the further northwest he went, the more snow there was. Liang Shenyu sat on the horseback and looked at the outline of the city in the distance.

"My Lord, if we go further, we will reach Xingzhou." Wu Jie rode forward, but before he could finish his words, he saw the scouts in front of him coming back, bringing someone with them and pushing them in front of Liang Shenyu.

"My lord, this person is sneaking around ahead, I'm afraid he has bad intentions!" said the scout.

The man shook his head repeatedly, shouting that he was wronged: "Hey - no, no, I am the servant of the governor of Xingzhou. My master heard that the Marquis of Dingbei was passing by, so he sent me to see when the prince would arrive, so that I could go back and report, and my master came to greet him in person!"

Liang Shenyu raised his eyebrows slightly and said slowly: "That's wronged you."

Wu Jie came over and whispered, "Master Hou..."

Liang Shenyu raised his hand to stop him, leaned over, holding the whip, and smiled slightly.

"Let him go."