Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

"Pillow style?" Liu Peiji sneered: "You don't know, right? Since Concubine Yang entered the palace, the emperor has not stayed a night in the palace. The queen's bed is empty, how can she blow pillows? wind?"

"Oh, Lao Liu, do you even know this?" Others laughed: "This is not a small skill!"

Liu Peiji was about to speak, but his sleeve was pulled by someone. When he turned around, he saw that it was his old friend Hu Youcheng. He immediately realized that he had said too much and coughed quickly: "You guys took these nonsense seriously. I still have a few things on hand, so I won’t talk anymore!”

When the others saw this, they didn't know that Liu Peiji didn't want to talk anymore, so they all laughed and dispersed. Liu Peiji returned to his seat, and Hu Youcheng whispered: "You don't want your life, you even dare to talk about such things!"

"Hey, that's easy to say!" Liu Peiji laughed twice.

"Sure, the executioner's sword is also very smooth. Do you want to try it?" Hu Youcheng snorted coldly: "Sooner or later, you will die from this mouth. Rather than being implicated by you, I might as well sue you first! "

Liu Peiji knew that he was in the wrong, so he just laughed but said nothing. Hu Youcheng complained a few times, and when he was almost out of anger, he stopped complaining. He looked at the people around him and whispered: "But it's no wonder Pei Shizhong, he After a long time, the general went to Liaodong, but he had another Yang Pushe to share power with him. His daughter became the queen, but the emperor ignored him and only favored other women. If it were me, I would also be full of temper. !”

"It doesn't matter if you have a temper, don't you have to endure it?" Liu Peiji snorted coldly: "Old Hu, you still don't understand? This Yang Pushe was brought by the emperor to temporarily replace General Wang. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence? General Wang was going to Liaodong, so the emperor went to the Yang Mansion every two days. He also welcomed a niece of Yang Sijian into the palace and made Yang Sijian his servant. To put it bluntly, he just wanted the Yang family to pull the legs of Pei Shizhong and his daughter in the palace and the mansion. , share their power? Even if there is no Yang Sijian, the emperor will have to find someone else, anyway, he will not let Pei Shizhong have too much power!"

"Yes, that should be the case!" Hu Youcheng took a breath of cold air: "In this way, today's people seem to be benevolent, filial, cowardly, but they do have some skills!"

"Benevolent, filial, cowardly?" Liu Peiji sneered: "How can there be such a person who can sit in that position? It's just that someone was the villain in the past. Now that the general is no longer in Chang'an, he has revealed his methods! "

"Ahem!" The more Hu Youcheng listened, the more flustered he became, and he coughed twice: "Old Liu! What did I just say to you? Can't you be more careful with your mouth? Can you say anything?"

Only then did Liu Peiji realize that he had said too much. He laughed twice awkwardly and lightly patted his right cheek: "This is the mouth. It should be beaten, it should be beaten!"

Seeing his old friend's helpless look, Hu Youcheng could only sigh helplessly: "Forget it, you brought this bad habit from your mother's womb. I'm afraid it can't be changed. There's just one thing I don't understand. Look at this matter. You understand, can’t Shizhong Pei understand?”

"So what if I understand? There is no turning back for him!" Liu Peiji sneered: "He doesn't have a way out like you and me. His daughter is still in the back position! A servant can be dismissed from the official position, and he can be promoted to an official position. Queen But it's different. There are only two ways to get down from the position of queen, either to die or to be deposed! Pei Laoer has only one way out. His daughter gives birth to a son and is established as the prince. Other than that, There is no other way!”

"So, Shizhong Pei is being roasted on the fire!" Hu Youcheng sighed, with sympathy in his eyes.If what Liu Peiji said was true and the emperor did not go to the palace at all, how could the queen give birth to a son?But now that the emperor and Concubine Yang stay together every day, if a son is born, it will be a matter of course to depose Pei Liyang. At that time, Pei Judao thought that it would be hard to give up his son for a field.

"Who told his daughter to be dissatisfied?" Liu Peiji sneered: "Originally, the matter of establishing a queen has mixed benefits. If you prosper with it, you will perish. Since ancient times, it is rare for a descendant to be the prime minister without the family being destroyed. Pei The old man rose to the top by sending his daughter into the palace. If he was smart, he should have made friends with General Wang and give up part of his power to leave himself a way out. But he did not rely on his daughter to be the queen, so he was greedy and tried his best to seize power. By now we are riding a tiger with a hard time getting off, and it’s too late to regret it!”

"The eldest grandsons, kings, and Wus of this dynasty all had daughters as queens. Although they were famous for a while, they were short-lived." Hu Youcheng sighed: "It is said that the Pei family in Hedong is also a famous family, starting from the Later Han Dynasty. It’s been 500 years since I started, but I never expected that I would end up in this situation!”

"The Pei family in Hedong has grown branches and leaves for hundreds of years. There are many branches, and Pei Judao is just one of them!" Liu Peiji sneered: "Even if Pei Judao's branch is gone, there are other branches, why do you have to worry about others? If nothing else, isn’t Pei Xingjian, who is currently conquering the Turks, also from the Pei family in Hedong?”

"That's true!" Hu Youcheng nodded: "By the way, speaking of Pei Xingjian, how is the military situation at Longyou?"

"What else can we do?" Liu Peiji rolled his eyes: "It's only been a few years since Dafeichuan? Back then, one hundred thousand elite soldiers were gone. How could it be so easy to recover? They are still farming and training!" At least it will take another three to five years before there is any improvement, so be patient!"

"That's true! Hey, when I think back to the scene before we sent out troops, it still feels like a lifetime ago!" Hu Youcheng shook his head: "Forget it, let's not talk about this. If you are fine tonight, come to my house. Someone sent me to my house a few days ago. I got a pair of Silla maids for me, Hu Xuanwu is pretty good, do you want to have some fun together?"

"Silla Maid?" Liu Peiji's eyes suddenly narrowed: "Okay, okay, let's make an appointment tonight!"

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Taiji Palace and Chengxiang Courtyard.

Xu Xuwen stood by the basin, scrubbing his hands with loose skin, and asked the imperial physician who was kneeling on the ground: "This matter is no joke. Have you confirmed that the pulse of the palace maid is pregnant?"

"Absolutely not wrong!" The imperial doctor was a man in his early forties, with sparse beard scattered on his protruding chin, making him look a bit ridiculous: "The pulse of the palace maid is as smooth as a bead, and the pulse is smooth. Although the villain's medical skills are crude, , but if I can get the wrong pulse, then you will gouge out my eyes, Mr. Xu!"

Xu Xuwen shook his hands and shook off the water droplets on them. The waiter on the side hurried forward and carefully wiped Xu Xuwen's hands clean with a towel. Xu Xuwen sat down on the chair and retracted his hands into his sleeves: "Mistress Pregnancy is a big deal. As errands in the palace, what we need to do is to be cautious and careful. We must not make any mistakes. You can confirm it again. Also, look at the pulse of the palace maid. When is the approximate date of conception? "

"Yes, what the young eunuch said is true!" the imperial doctor responded: "I will go and confirm immediately. The day when the woman was conceived should be about three months ago!"

"Three months ago, that would be February or March? Come, please check whether His Majesty had any contact with the palace maid during that time?" "Yes!" The waiter next to him responded, and silently withdrew, Xu Xuwen He signaled the imperial doctor to get up, pointed to the chair next to him, and motioned for him to sit down: "Looking at your age, you have been in the palace for some time, so you should know the rules! I won't say more, we are both here Wait here until there is concrete news. If you are lucky and the baby is born a boy, he will be the prince!"

"Yes, yes!" the imperial doctor responded twice, and it was not difficult to see his excitement.
Soon, the chamberlain who had just gone out came back, holding a book in his hand and presented it to Xu Xuwen: "Old Ancestor, according to the records in the book, it is true that the Holy Lord summoned the maid to serve him three months ago, but it was only that one time. .”

"Oh?" Xu Xuwen raised his eyebrows slightly: "What a coincidence! Concubine Yang and the empress have been childless for such a long time, so the palace maid became pregnant overnight. It's really a miracle of good fortune!"

"Yes, that palace maid is really a blessed person!" the imperial doctor said with a smile.

"You are also a blessed person! Otherwise, how could you encounter such good things?" Xu Xuwen said with a smile.

"It's just thanks to your blessing!" The imperial doctor smiled and said, "Should we report this good news to the Holy One immediately?"

Xu Xuwen did not speak, but his gaze made the imperial doctor gasp for breath. He realized that he had said the wrong thing and hurriedly explained: "Everything is decided by the young eunuch!"

"Hahaha!" Xu Xuwen laughed: "Go and take care of that woman first! You have to be careful. If it's a boy, His Majesty will definitely not treat her badly!"

"Yes, yes!" The eunuch stood up and carefully exited the door.The smile on Xu Xuwen's face gradually disappeared. He walked to the window, looked at the bright moon outside the window, and sighed: "It's so unlucky to be pregnant. It's been such an eventful year!"

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Fanyang, canal wharf.

"We are almost at Fanyang!" The captain's voice was a little hoarse: "When it gets daylight, you will be able to see Fanyang City clearly. I bet you will be shocked. It is a city completely different from other cities. A different city, a truly majestic city!”

To the east, the first faint rays of morning light illuminated the sky above the river.The water of the canal gradually turned from black to yellow-green, and Cao Sennu and Li Shangdao stood side by side by the side of the boat.When the night birds are quiet, the water birds and sparrows by the river begin to sing.Egrets scurry out of the dense reeds, leaving their footprints in the sky.Compared with the countless large and small boats on the river bank, these can only be said to be a drop in the bucket.

"Master Li, I really didn't expect you to come to Fan Yang!" Cao Sennu looked at the densely packed masts in the distance and sighed.

"Is there anything you can't think of?" Li Shangdao slapped the back of his hand with a folding fan: "Do you think I'm just an eagle and a lackey, but you've forgotten who my ancestors are?"

"No, no!" Cao Sennu quickly denied: "That's not what I meant, but you really can't do it! You lived a fairy life in Yangzhou, and Fan Yang was in chaos. Who would have thought that you would come back here! "

"No matter how good the days are, no one can stand it!" Li Shangdao glanced at Cao Sengnu: "Besides, I am different from you after all. You are a businessman, and making money is never enough for you. But I It’s different. I’ve earned enough money over the years, and my wealth and splendor are just a piece of cake. What I want now is to see what my ancestors went through. After all, I still have Hejian County flowing through me. The king’s blood!”

Cao Sennu was stunned when he heard this. He could feel a trace of disappointment in the other party's words. It was obvious that this noble young master who had already enjoyed all the glory in the world was actually not satisfied with his original life.He was ordered to recruit two thousand Xuanrun crossbowmen to go north. When it was time to set off, Mr. Li brought more than a hundred followers and said he wanted to go to Fanyang together. He couldn't refuse, so he had to come together.Originally, he thought that this was a young man from a rich family who wanted to try something new and go back naturally after suffering some hardships. Now he felt that his guess might be wrong.

"Stop the boat, stop the boat!"

The shouts from the river interrupted Cao Sengnu's thoughts. He looked up and saw a long and narrow boat rowing towards him. An official in green official robes stood at the bow. He hurriedly said to the captain: "Stop the boat." !”

"Paddle back, paddle back!"

With the rhythmic shouting of the oarsmen, the long oars began to move in the opposite direction, picking up large pieces of white foam, and the boat began to slow down.Cao Sengnu bowed his hand to the approaching boat: "I am Cao Sengnu, a subordinate of the general. On board are crossbowmen recruited from the south. May I ask what the Taiwei (this was the honorific title for the military attache at that time) ordered?"

"It turns out they are subordinates of the general!" The green-robed official hurriedly returned the salute: "There is an order from above that foreign ships cannot go directly to the dock and must queue up here. Since you are carrying people on board, you might as well come here. Ashore, let’s take the remaining part of the way by land!”

"Land route? Why can't we take the water route? These crossbowmen still have a lot of luggage, but they don't have livestock and vehicles. The land route will only take a lot of time!" Cao Sengnu asked in confusion.

"You don't know, the canal dock next to Fanyang has been crowded for a long time!" the green-robed official replied: "The general is deploying troops to pacify Liaodong, and the rivers for more than ten miles are crowded with ships from all over. There is no place for you to dock, so why not get ashore here first and walk over!"

"Okay! That's all we can do!" Cao Sengnu sighed helplessly, turned around and said to Li Shang: "Master Li, you have heard it too, let's go ashore first!"

"More than ten miles are crowded with ships from all over the country!" Li Shangdao repeated the words of the green-robed official, his eyes flashing with fanaticism. He grabbed Cao Sengnu's arm: "No, you stay on the ship to take care of it. As for the baggage, I will lead the troops to Fan Yang with light packs first, and then slowly transport them over after they land on shore!" (End of this chapter)