After becoming a widow, I raised my traitor brother

That night.

The night is as cool as water, and the cinnamon is fragrant.

Wei Zi sat in front of the window, looking at the handkerchief with blood written on it by the moonlight.

Although he has obtained evidence to prove the prince's innocence, he has no chance to show it now.

She can't sue the current emperor and the prime minister, can she?
Even if she dared, no yamen would dare to accept it, so she could only wait patiently, waiting for a suitable opportunity.

Wei Zi sighed softly, got up and locked the handkerchief into the box.

Just as she was going to bed, Hua Yannong appeared in the deep palace.

The palace here is very lonely and quiet, and two palace lanterns are hung in front of the closed palace gate, vaguely illuminating the plaque engraved with the words "Zhaiyue Palace".

Zhou Shuo was wearing a bright yellow robe and stood outside the palace gate with his hands behind his back.

He looked up.

The palace stands majestically and is brightly lit. The halo of the palace lanterns is blurred by the surrounding night mist. Behind the highest railing is a woman in a beautiful dress. Behind her are surrounded by flower-like maidens, like stars holding the moon.

"Aifei..."

He watched from a distance, and couldn't help but let out a sigh.

Hua Yan stood behind him densely: "As proud as the Ninth Five-Year Lord, will you not get what you want?"

Zhou Shuo let out a self-deprecating chuckle, and immediately turned to him: "Aiqing entered the palace so late, but what's the matter?"

"Your Majesty is not surprised. With His Royal Highness's dull aptitude, how could he know Li Jinglin's secret tricks in advance?"

Zhou Shuo looked slightly cold: "You mean, someone secretly helped the prince?"

"My minister has checked carefully. During the time when the crown prince was repairing water and embankments in the outskirts of the city, Wei Zi, the eldest daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, ordered someone to deliver food to His Highness the Crown Prince in the name of rewarding him. Afterwards, an eunuch in the house witnessed it with his own eyes. He took out a note from the inside of the brazier. Although the note was burned later, the little eunuch still picked up a corner of the remnant from the brazier that could not be burned to ashes in the future. After sorting it out, I guess it should be Li Jinglin's name. The person who advised the prince is probably Wei Zi."

Hua Yannong took out a piece of paper the size of a fingernail from his sleeve, and there was indeed a charred "Jing" character on it.

Zhou Shuo's breath suddenly became cold.

Although only one word can't directly prove anything, but if you don't be afraid of ten thousand, you are afraid of what happens. Everything in this world is questionable.

He said: "She is a little girl, how did she know the inside story?"

"I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with Lord Zhen Guo."

"Wei Ling..."

Zhou Shuo slowly read the name.

Hua Yan said thickly: "When your Majesty was young, the battle for the heir apparent was so fierce. Fortunately, the old Wei Guogong, Mrs. Wei, and people from the Xining General's Mansion gave full support to take this position. Your Majesty is grateful for the old kindness. People in Duke Wei's Mansion are very tolerant, it can be said that they have repaid their kindness back then. I am afraid that some people will be arrogant because of His Majesty's favor and trust, and will act recklessly and meddle in His Majesty's private affairs!"

Zhou Shuo couldn't tell the difference between joy and anger.

A cold fog filled the palace.

After a while, he said slowly: "It's time for me to beat them too."

three days later.

The dace river case was officially closed, Li Jinglin was interrogated and beheaded in the street, the crown prince Zhou Xianyuan was demoted to common people, and he was imprisoned in the cold palace.

Qiuyang is bleak.

On the white marble steps outside the imperial study, Empress Jiang was wearing the old clothes of her youth, she took off her hairpins and did not apply makeup. With the support of two court ladies, her face was shaky, and she staggered up the steps.

She stepped into the imperial study room, Zhou Shuo was discussing matters with others.

She didn't care about anything else, and knelt down in front of Zhou Shuo. When she looked up, she almost cried for the past few days until her red, swollen and dry eyes shed tears again: "Your Majesty watched Qichu grow up with his own eyes, do you really not know what kind of character he is?" ?!"

Zhou Shuo was expressionless: "The queen has become more and more unruly, but can't you see that I am discussing marriage with the emperor?"

After he finished yelling, his eyes fell on her, and he couldn't help furrowing his brows, and said in disgust: "You are dressed like this, dressed so shabby, do you want to humiliate me on purpose?! Jiang Keyi, you are a queen, not a village woman." !"

Empress Jiang stared at Zhou Shuo through her teary eyes.

She has loved the man in front of her all her life.

When he was young, Zhou Shuo's mother and concubine had a low status, and his mother clan had no power and power, so he was not loved by the late emperor.

When it was time to get married, the first emperor pointed her out to him.

Her father is not a high-ranking official, and she has never coveted the position of queen, she just wants to live in peace with her husband.

She loves her husband, even if the battle for the heir apparent became more intense later on, and Zhou Shuo was framed by his brothers at the most miserable time, deprived of his title and imprisoned in the mansion, she stayed by his side without complaint, and never moved to abandon him. idea.

The winter of that year was extremely difficult, and everyone said that Zhou Shuo was about to be questioned and exiled.

At that time, not long after she gave birth to Qichu, she went to beg those high-ranking officials for Zhou Shuo.

In the snowy night, she knelt in front of their door, kowtowed and shed tears, and she spoke all soft words.

She begged everyone to believe that Zhou Shuo was innocent.

That winter, she froze her body to death in exchange for Zhou Shuo's innocence.

Later, Zhou Shuo ascended to the throne after several ups and downs. She thought she could finally live a stable and happy life. Who would have thought that she was inexplicably accused by Gong'e of being jealous of her concubine and murdering the emperor's heir. Zhou Shuo was furious and threw her and Qichu into the cold palace. .

How hard it is to live in the cold palace, their mother and son endured it for six years.

The eunuchs and mothers saw that their eyes were open to money, that their mother and son had lost power, and they had no money to support them, so they abused them in different ways.

She clearly remembers that year, when her Qichu was just a naive child, her ten fingers were red, swollen and chapped from the cold, but she still held the old writing brush with a split end and practiced stroke by stroke carefully in the snow. Character.

She was so distressed that she shed tears, but he raised his head, and when he smiled, his eyes seemed to be hiding stars, and he comforted her: "Mother, my child works hard to practice calligraphy and study hard. In the future, when Father finds out the truth and picks us up If you find out that your child can read and understand books, you will definitely be proud of your child!"

In the seventh year, with the help of some courtiers, she finally regained her post, and took Qichu out of the cold palace innocently.

At that time, she knew that Zhou Shuo didn't love her, but she thought, Qichu was Zhou Shuo's first child, how could there be a father who didn't love his eldest son?
The father and son haven't been together for six years, so they must be missing them in their hearts.

But she was still disappointed.

Zhou Shuo doesn't love her, nor their children.

He only glanced at Qichu's words, then threw them on the ground contemptuously, bluntly saying that Qichu was stupid, and also said that his brothers would have written these words a long time ago, and they were worthy of being brought in front of him to dirty his eyes.

Her eyes were full of tears at the beginning, and since then, she has worked hard day and night without daring to slack off.

Royal study.

Empress Jiang was thinking about the past, thinking about her children, and burst into tears.

She said in a hoarse voice: "Your Majesty dislikes the shabby clothes of the concubine? I dislike the embarrassment of the concubine who embarrasses you? But this clothes are from when you were the prince, and the concubine ran day and night to save you. The clothes worn by the courtiers outside the door. I didn’t see you dislike it back then, why do you dislike it now?”

Zhou Shuo stared at her suddenly.

After a while, he raised his hand to touch the teacups on the table, and scolded sharply: "Crazy woman!"