Jiuxi

Chapter 480 Chapter 478 [Sadness after a long separation]

Autumn passes and winter comes, and the world becomes cold.

No matter how the outside world changes, there seems to be only one color in Qiushan Lane.

It's not black that soaks into the bones, nor is it dazzling pure white, but gray that covers the sky.

There are obviously trees and flowers in the alley, but even in spring and summer, what you see is a gray and isolated world.

In the innermost courtyard, a young man in his early twenties, wearing a short coat and holding a long ax, stood in the corner of the courtyard chopping firewood.

His movements were very standard, his force was very precise, and his ax was clean and neat.

In less than one stick of incense, a large pile of firewood appeared in the corner.

The young man raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and suddenly heard a calm voice coming from behind him.

"Third brother."

The young man turned his head suddenly, his expression slightly stunned, and hesitantly said: "Second brother?"

A voice that Li Zongjian missed very much but did not dare to miss sounded at the courtyard gate.

The two agreed, and then led Lu Shizhou out of the courtyard.

Li Duan said without comment, and said to the prince and Lu Chen: "You go and wait outside."

The young man is Li Zongjian, the third prince who was deprived of the title of prince. His current title is Fengguo Lieutenant, the lowest rank among the clan.

Looking at his brother's princely uniform, Li Zongjian felt both envy and loneliness in his eyes. He rubbed his hands and said, "Your Highness, please sit in the room."

Li Duan walked towards the house, and Li Zongjian followed closely.

Li Zongjian's pupils suddenly shrank, and he smiled reluctantly: "Father...Father is here?"

"My son, please see your father!"

He subconsciously swallowed his saliva, turned around and saw the emperor walking slowly in his regular clothes. He was obviously much thinner than half a year ago, and his face didn't look too good.

Li Zongjian was very surprised by the prince's arrival. Since he was imprisoned in Qiushan Lane, he had completely lost contact with the outside world. Even the queen did not get the emperor's permission to visit him. Even though he firmly refused the invitation of Ning Yuanfu, the former Minister of Civil Affairs, on the night of the Beijing army's rebellion, he did not impress the emperor, and then the guards here became looser.

"Get up."

Behind the emperor was the eunuch Lu Shizhou with a concerned look on his face, and then the Shanyang Marquis Lu Chen, who was unforgettable to Li Zongjian.

Since it is a restricted area, there will definitely not be very good conditions. The furnishings in the house are very simple, with nothing more than tables, chairs and benches, and there is not even a decent nave.

Li Duan spoke calmly, glanced at the slightly cramped courtyard and the pile of dry wood behind Li Zongjian, and narrowed his eyes slightly: "It's not a bad thing to be self-reliant."

However, he quickly reacted, put down the ax quickly, bowed respectfully and said: "I pay my respects to His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Li Zongjian quickly explained: "Father, I have not been treated harshly in terms of food, clothing, and daily life. It's just that I want to move my body, so I took the initiative to discuss with the people in charge here that I can do some of the work myself."

"I can't come?"

Prince Li Zongben stepped forward, helped him up, and said calmly: "No need to be polite."

Li Zongjian knelt down and saluted with some embarrassment and nervousness.

The prince shook his head and said softly: "Father is here to see you."

Not to mention that compared with the magnificent Jianwang Mansion, Li Zongjian had never even set foot in such a shabby house before, let alone lived here permanently.

Now I can see that he skillfully pulled out a chair, carefully wiped it with a clean handkerchief several times, and then invited Li Duan to take a seat. It can be seen that he is very accustomed to this kind of life.

Li Duan watched quietly, and when Li Zongjian lifted the teapot with a slight embarrassment and didn't know whether to use the tea bowl here, he said, "Pour a bowl."

"Yes, Father."

Li Zongjian, as if he was receiving a general amnesty, poured the tea until it was seven-tenths full and served it with both hands respectfully.

Li Duan looked down and saw that the tea was very ordinary. Compared with the tributes in the palace, it was like clouds and mud. At most, it only had a little more astringency and no fragrance at all.

He put down the steaming tea bowl, pointed to the stool next to him and said, "Sit down."

"Yes, Father."

Li Zongjian walked over and sat down with half of his buttocks.

The room fell into silence.

Li Zongjian seemed to be able to hear his own heartbeat.

Of course he didn't want to be trapped in Qiushan Lane for the rest of his life, but he also knew that his father seemed gentle, but in fact he was extremely determined and would not change his decision. Besides, he had indeed done many stupid things in the past, such as using dead soldiers to assassinate the country in the street. Hou——This is completely different from his usual tyranny in the capital, but his arrogance and ignorance that does not put his father in the eyes at all. He also knew that his mother could not save him either.

Originally, this feeling of despair would have always enveloped him, until today's sudden arrival of his father, he couldn't help but feel a little hope.

Li Duan seemed to know the young son's thoughts very well, and asked calmly: "Why did you reject Ning Yuanfu that night?"

Li Zongjian forced himself to calm down, thought for a while and replied: "Father, my son has indeed done many wrong things, but he has never had any disobedience... It is because he is so greedy that he covets the position of the crown prince, and even does so. The stupid thing of sending people to assassinate Lu Chen in the street was indeed an act of rebellion, but the son was just unwilling to do so and never thought of being detrimental to his father. Ning Yuanfu and others were plotting to rebel. Aren't they disloyal and unfilial people by collaborating with others?"

Li Duan looked up at him and was silent for a while.

The critical period of Li Zongjian's growth was precisely Li Duan's most difficult stage, which was probably from the time he ascended the throne to two years ago.

In the past ten years, he had to deal with the Jiangnan clan, support the border troops to deal with powerful enemies, and develop his own inner circle without disturbing the family. He racked his brains almost all the time. The body is slowly worn down by this extreme exertion.

Therefore, even though the eldest prince and the second prince have shortcomings, they have not gone astray in essence. This is due to Li Duan's teachings to them back then.

Li Duan obviously didn't have much energy to take care of Li Zongjian, so he could only leave him to Queen Xu to bring him up, thus developing a bad temperament that was completely different between him and the other two princes.

Li Duan actually didn't believe Li Zongjian's answer at all. The reason why this young son refused the invitation from Ning Yuanfu and others was mainly because he could see that those people had no chance of winning.

As for the words "loyalty and filial piety", they may have this influence, but at best it is only a small part.

Li Duan rubbed the teacup and said slowly: "Before I came to Qiushan Lane today, I have been hesitating whether to find a reason to kill you. If you are allowed to live, you may not become a hidden danger to Daqi in the future, but the future The matter has been settled. You have been very docile during this period. To kill you seems to be an act of punishment without instruction. People often say that tigers are poisoned but they cannot eat their seeds. Some people also say that there is no family affection in the Tian family. Which sentence do you think I should believe? "

Li Zongjian's face turned pale and he said in a trembling voice: "Father, I don't want to die."

Li Duan looked at him steadily and said, "Don't you want to die?"

Li Zongjian slid down from the chair, knelt on the ground with a plop, bowed his head and said: "Father, I already know my mistake, please spare my life! I will live in Qiushan Lane from now on. I will never take another step forward, let alone cause any harm to Daqi, please be wise!"

Li Duan suddenly laughed.

There was a hint of sarcasm in the laughter.

He looked at his young son who was sweating profusely and looked panic-stricken, and sighed quietly: "If the boss is alive, why would I have to go through this journey."

Li Zongjian's mind was spinning very quickly, and he understood the profound meaning of this sentence.

If the eldest prince had not died in the rebellion, his father would not have worried that the prince would be unable to survive alone in the future, so he, the third child, would naturally be dispensable.

Or maybe the death of the eldest prince was such a huge blow to his father that it was difficult for him to make up his mind to experience a white-haired man sending a black-haired man away again.

In any case, it shows that in the heart of the father, his existence seems to be a mistake.

A feeling of anger and sadness filled Li Zongjian's heart.

Li Duan continued: "I know that you are unhappy and think that I am too mean to you and have no father-son affection at all. Before you blame me, you should think carefully about whether you have ever cared about the word family love from the beginning to the end. . Leaving aside me and your two brothers, you should know very well how the queen treats you. Although I don’t like her doting on you, you should be filial to the queen first, but how did you do it? Woolen cloth?"

The anger in Li Zongjian's heart slowly faded away, and he raised his head and looked at his father.

Li Duan said expressionlessly: "You knew she didn't want you to attack the boss, nor did you want you to drag the Xu family into the abyss, but you still framed the boss and asked people from the Xu family to assassinate Lu Chen. Now the Xu family can't even keep their wealth, and many people have died. This is the price they have to pay for intervening in the government. All of this is because of you. "

Li Zongjian felt his mouth full of bitterness and said with difficulty: "Father, I no longer have those wishful thinking."

Li Duan laughed at himself and sighed: "You are not like me in many aspects. The only thing you are like me is that you are stubborn to the extreme. It's just that I use my stubbornness for business, and I always think about what Da Qi can do. Back in the old capital, you are focused on the chair in the palace. No matter how obedient and docile you are, as long as you see a chance, you will immediately eliminate everyone who stands in front of you. "

Li Zongjian remained silent.

Silence is often an answer.

"Get up."

Li Duan picked up the tea cup, took a sip with low interest, and then said: "You made the right bet, I will not kill you, because I am just a common person, a confused person who is vulgar and vulgar, and thinks that there is family affection in the heavenly family."

Li Zongjian was shocked. He looked at the middle-aged man's thin face and suddenly realized that his father, who was once upright, had become so weak.

Although Li Duan did not explain it thoroughly, based on Li Zongjian's understanding of him, unless he had already sensed that the passage of life was irreversible, he would never show this unspeakable aura of twilight.

At the thought of this, Li Zongjian felt a strong sadness welling up in his heart, so he kowtowed and said, "Thank you, Father."

Li Duan stood up holding on to the armrest, looked at his youngest son who was still kneeling on the ground, and said softly: "I am here today to tell you personally that you should never think about him again for the rest of your life. The prince will definitely spare your life. If not, I will definitely give you a life." If you have that kind of thought and take a step beyond that, the people I arrange will kill you without hesitation."

"Live a good life and don't be like your big brother."

He walked out slowly and didn't look back.

Li Zongjian turned around and knelt down for a few steps, a look of sadness appeared on his face.

"My son, I respectfully send you my father."

(End of this chapter)