Leader Lan Palace

Chapter 2498 Eight Volumes 23 Theft
Because of this single appetizing dish, and the fact that both the empress dowager and the emperor seemed to have forgotten the unhappiness with her, it was obvious that there was a big change in temperament, and it was the [-]th day of the second lunar month that Nala family lived in. The whole journey of this southern tour was the happiest day.

Even though in the late afternoon, the emperor rewarded him with food, there were still four people above the concubine, and it was not just for Nalashi.

The emperor rewarded Nala with Suzhou balls, Wanxi with stewed cabbage, Yuqin with glutinous rice balls, and Concubine Rong with small pastry.They are all snacks for dinner, and they are all simple and light.

Although Nala said that he was a little regretful that the joy of being rewarded alone had gone in only three hours, but at any rate, the joy brought by the two happy events before today has not passed away.

Besides—since the practice has been effective, there will be many good days in the future, so you don't have to worry about the gains and losses of this point in front of you.
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After finishing the evening, Nala rested peacefully, waiting for a better tomorrow.

But she didn't know that a big case broke out in front of the emperor on this day—the rosary beads were stolen in Savatthi City, Yuanmingyuan!

In the Old Summer Palace, between the "Buddha City" Sravasti City and Tongyuan, there is a long north-south street.Because it is near the Buddha City, it looks like a folk temple fair, so a "Business Street" was opened.

The main body of this shopping street is north-south, with a river flowing in the middle. A double-plank pedal bridge is erected on the river, named Shuangqiao. The long street is thus divided into Shuangqiao South Street and North Street. Extending northward to the south of Shewei City forms a basic The symmetrical east and west streets together form this group of street markets.

"Regulations on the Decoration of Shop Shops and Signboards in Yuanmingyuan" clearly lists the types of these shops in Yuanmingyuan, including pawnshops, jewelry shops, silver stores, incense and wax shops, paper horse shops, oil and salt shops, vegetable beds, and grain shops. , paint shop, teahouse, Nanjiu shop, dried fruit shop, etc.

In addition, there are weapon shops, saddle shops, stationery shops, antique shops, taverns, restaurants, clothing stores, porcelain shops, lacquerware shops, silk shops, cloth shops, bookstores, wooden furniture shops, bird shops...these regular shops In addition to the facade shops, there are also temporary small vendors selling drinks, fruits, snacks, and sewing department stores.

In addition, there are also foreign gadgets from Europe and Japan for sale in the shopping street.

This lively place is right next to the Buddha City and the Paradise Stage. It is the place where the royal family and the princes and ministers who are given to watch the theater in the Paradise must visit during the festivals from Chinese New Year to Lantern Festival every year.

On the day of the New Year's Eve, the nobles of the royal family can go to worship Buddha first, and then go to the Tongyuan Theater to watch a play.

Such a good place, but something went wrong this year - after the Lantern Festival, the emperor also took the ex-chamber to the south to tour the harem, and the minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was free to remove the shops in the shopping street.While packing up the items in various shops, I found that the rosary had been stolen.

Because the shopping street is just outside the Buddha City, and the rosary beads were lost, this always makes people feel a little bit of a whisper; besides, this year the emperor made a tour of Luan on the [-]th day of the first lunar month, and he just finished the Lantern Festival in the Old Summer Palace. Didn't it make it clear that they deliberately rushed to do it during the emperor's southern tour?

Besides, at this moment, Elder Sixteen is still getting the pox in Bitong Academy, which is not far from the shopping street.The incident of theft inevitably caused people to worry about the unrest in the Old Summer Palace.

The ministers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who stayed in Beijing did not dare to be negligent, and immediately made inquiries, and reported the results of the inquiries to Hangzhou at this time.The chief eunuchs Li Yu, Zhang Guoxiang, Wu Jinzhong, etc. in the Yuanmingyuan, Shewei City, Maimai Street, etc., were all handed over to the palace supervisor for punishment.

The emperor was also furious, and sent an edict to the capital, approving the performance of the Minister of Internal Affairs, all the eunuchs in charge did not forgive, and all of them were punished.
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The emperor issued an order to deal with it, and early the next morning, that is, on the fifteenth day of the second lunar month, all the harem who accompanied him also got the letter.

Although the Southern Tour is out, the concubines in the harem do not have to follow the rules in the palace, and greet the queen every morning and evening.But because today is the fifteenth day, Wanxi, Yuqin, Concubine Rong, and Ning Changzai still came to Nala's palace.

Nala could not help but talk about the theft of the rosary.

Nala raised her eyebrows, "Theft is not to be tolerated. It's just that they are buying and selling rosary beads stolen in the street, and they are not for the emperor's use. How did the emperor implicate so many people this time? The three managers, Li Yu and Zhang Guoxiang , Wu Jinzhong, usually a diligent and hard-working person, to be punished for such a trivial matter, really feels wronged."

Wanxi and Yuqin met Youyou's eyes.

Wanxi's eyes drooped slightly, "From my perspective, stealing a rosary is a minor matter, but disrespecting gods and Buddhas is a major matter."

Yuqin also shrugged slightly, "Isn't that right! There are hundreds of thousands of items on the shopping street. Why didn't you lose all the gold, silver, pearls and jade besides, but why did you lose a rosary instead?"

Just yesterday there was an incident where Nala's family only rewarded five taels of silver again at Lingyin Temple, Yuqin's words made Nala's ears a little harsh.

Then Nala sneered, "In my opinion, maybe some deity and Buddha in Savatthi City fell in love with this rosary, so he cast his magic power and took it away to enjoy when people were not prepared. chant!"

Even Concubine Rong, who doesn't believe in Buddhism, couldn't help raising her eyebrows at this moment, "Is the empress saying that the gods and Buddhas are robbers, and you are blaming others?"

Nala was a little embarrassed, but refused to give in, and said with a sneer, "Concubine Rong, you don't respect gods and Buddhas, and talk about things in Buddhism! It's enough for you to respect your true gods!"
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Perhaps because of the fifteenth day, the emperor came to Lingyin again after three days.On this day, I went to Faxi Temple in "Shangtianzhu".

Still, the abbot and monk Delin of Lingyin Temple picked him up in person.

During the question and answer between the emperor and Delin that day, the emperor specifically asked: "Can you practice Zen?"

Delin echoed: "Practice Zen."

The emperor asked again: "What kind of Zen are you participating in?"

Delin echoed: "See 'All Laws Return to One'."

The emperor then asked: "Where is the return of the law now?"

Delin replied: "The Holy Son of Heaven in the Qing Dynasty."

The emperor smiled, and gave Faxi Temple 100 taels of incense gold, eight bundles of Tibetan incense, four seals of Om Ba incense, and a stone-carved Buddha statue.

Although I didn’t go to Lingyin Temple this day, but Faxi Temple is nearby Lingyin Temple, and the abbot of Lingyin Temple is also in charge of Delin, so this day’s itinerary is actually similar to that of Lingyin Temple three days ago. The trip to the hidden temple has the meaning of being connected in one vein.

After the emperor returned from Faxi Temple, Wanxi, Yuqin and others also returned from Nala's residence.

Wanxi and Yuqin accompany the emperor to have dinner at the West Lake Palace, and both of them can see that the emperor is in a good mood.

"Every time I come back from Lingyin Temple, the emperor can always untie a knot in his heart. Although we didn't accompany us today, it also made us feel at ease." After dinner, the emperor was busy with business again in the afternoon (Dinner is at one or two o'clock in the afternoon.) Wanxi and Yuqin returned with a smile, and Wanxi was relieved to go.

Yuqin also joked, "for breakfast today, the emperor gave the queen a plate of meat, you gave stewed tofu, I gave shredded chicken, and I gave shredded mutton to Concubine Rong; , the emperor rewarded the queen with lychee meat, you with fried oil, me with wine stewed duck, and your concubine with Yang Chagu..."

After Yuqin finished speaking, she gave Wanxi a deliberate look, "Why do you have two meals in the morning and evening? Among the four of us, you are the only one who rewards you with vegetarian food. We all eat meat?"

Wanxi didn't come back to her senses for a while, raised her eyebrows and smiled, "I used to eat less meat, but these days I ate a lot of meat, so I can't get rid of it."

Yuqin spat with a smile, "Bah! You can't get rid of those meaty smells, but I can get rid of them? Isn't it because the emperor is going to burn incense again today, and it happens to be on the fifteenth day! - Besides, that Faxi The one enshrined in the temple is Guanyin Bodhisattva, isn't that what you wear around your neck?"

"Your Majesty, this is... even your share, I will worship for you!"

Wanxi also opened her mouth and was stunned, she raised her hand to press the small tooth-carved Guanyin in her neckline, her cheeks were hot, and she hurriedly lowered her head with a smile.

Seriously, if sister Lu hadn't told her to tell the truth, she would have been really careless and didn't notice.

Wanxi thought about the sweetness in her heart, lost her mind as she walked, but Yuqin raised her eyes suddenly, "... Speaking of the Guanyin Bodhisattva in Faxi Temple, have you ever thought of anything?"

"Huh?" Wanxi was stunned for a moment, "What happened to Guanyin Bodhisattva?"

Yuqin looked back and glanced at Yuying, then squeezed Wanxi's hand, "Did you forget about the Guanyin soil?! To tell you the truth, why this glutinous rice soil is called 'Guanyin soil', the allusion is It came out of this 'Shang Tianzhu' Faxi Temple!"

"In the 14th year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty, there was a severe drought in Hangzhou, and people died of hunger. It was rumored that Guanyin was in Shangtianzhu to help the hungry people, so they flocked to dig three feet of soil in Shangtianzhu, and took powdery soil to fill the hunger. From then on, the south of the Yangtze River When there is a famine, the hungry people will use it to satisfy their hunger, so it is called "Guanyin soil"!"

Wanxi was also shocked.

After all, Yuqin's mother's family is in Jiangnan, so she knows everything about Jiangnan in detail.

Wan Xi bowed her head immediately, "... Dai Jia's family is no longer here, what is the Emperor rushing to do today to Faxi Temple where the allusion of 'Guanyintu' came from?"

Yuqin raised her eyebrows and smiled lightly, "I guess, the emperor may have already made up his mind to deal with Dai Jiashi! But I don't know, who is it that made the emperor think so much this time? "

Wanxi raised her eyes, her eyes collided with Yuqin lightly, and smiled at each other.

In the afternoon of this day, an imperial decree came out from the emperor: "Hong Zong, the commander of the army guarding the bordered white flag, said: In the Forbidden City, the key to the palace is very important. From Jingyunmen to Longzongmen, please order the people at night as usual." Mendui dialed into Banzhangjing, Hujun Academy, Hujun, etc., and sent them around behind the Liuku wall one after another. After the shift, people from all over the place are not allowed to go in and out, and those who violate it will be investigated."

The emperor is ready to play and do as he asks.

This matter is about the defense of the Forbidden City, which seems to be far away from Hangzhou, and has nothing to do with the people in Hangzhou for the time being.

But in fact, if it is related to the theft of the rosary beads on the trading street in Savatthi City the day before, there is actually a causal relationship.

It's just the affairs of the court and the heart of the emperor, which are as profound as Zen.For those who do not practice Zen, their altar will be unclean, and they will not be able to understand it in the end.
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At this time, the southern tour is coming to an end.

The schedule for the emperor's return to Luan had already been set, and he returned to Luan on the [-]th day of the second lunar month.

In the capital, news from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Imperial Hospital continued to come in, and the process of Xiaoliu's pox vaccination also went smoothly.

If this is the case, Wanxi has long been eager to return home, just waiting to go back to Beijing, and she will also meet Xiaoliu who has successfully sent her to the saint.

In the next two days, everything in the West Lake Palace was stable.Everyone is preparing for returning to Luang on the [-]th.

On the [-]th day of the second lunar month, when the evening was used up, Qin Lu, the eunuch who played the role, delivered an edict: "Tomorrow breakfast will be served on the reef and the piano will be served."
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On the [-]th day of the second lunar month, at the first quarter of the hour (seven o'clock in the morning), Wanxi, Yuqin, and Concubine Rong were ordered to go to the reef to play the piano and serve meals.

Not long after the three of them arrived, Nala also accompanied the empress dowager.

"Mingqin on the Reef" was originally not big, but a small boat-shaped room built on the small flat ground in the middle of the mountain, according to the mountain situation.In front of the small room is the cliff, protected by stone railings.From here, we can see the black color and wave light of the West Lake, just like the immortals flying here on a chasm.

Such a building is better because of its exquisite shape.Therefore, this is not a spacious place, and it is really not suitable to squeeze so many people to have a meal together.

When there are too many people, the ostentation will increase, the rules will be stricter, and the number of people serving inside and outside will also increase several times—ordinarily, this will destroy the sense of tranquility here, and it is not in line with the emperor's taste.

But since the emperor made such an arrangement today, there is naturally a reason for the emperor.When Wanxi was surprised, she was at ease.

Thinking about it, it might be because we will be returning to Luan tomorrow, and this day is already the last day of our southern tour in Hangzhou, so the whole family had breakfast together.When we return to Luan tomorrow, the empress dowager and the emperor will be divided into two sides. It will not be easy for these people to gather together for dinner again, right?
The breakfast of this day is naturally rich, and the eunuchs serve the meal on a folding table: duck, bird's nest meatballs, stewed chicken comb meat, fat chicken and venison tendon, mutton slices, steamed duck and pork rolls, spoons, red cakes, and honey Cake, small steamed buns rolled with bamboo knots, side dishes in a silver sunflower box, and side dishes on a silver plate; a big dish hot meal, and a gold and silver tofu slice soup are included.

In addition, there are spare rewards of two tables of grams of food, two grades of milk, and ten grades of cakes...

As you can see, the emperor is not only going to have a joyful gathering with the harem, but also prepared a feast for the accompanying princes and ministers. This is a feast, just waiting for the return.

Everyone could see what the emperor meant, and they were eating with peace of mind. The dinner was relaxed and there were quite a lot of laughter.

The empress dowager was also rarely happy, which means "the reef is playing the qin", she smiled and said to Yuqin, "it reminds me of your name and qin skills. It's just that it's not appropriate to ask you to play the qin in public at this moment, so I keep it Go back to Beijing, and play the piano for me alone."

Yuqin is a Han woman, and it is rare for the empress dowager to speak so pleasantly.

Nala's tasteless, she put down her chopsticks, raised her eyebrows and looked at the Empress Dowager.

She thought to herself: What did you say?Isn't that practice already fulfilled?Then why did the old lady suddenly praise that man girl?Could it be that because Concubine Qing raised Xiao Shiwu, the Empress Dowager loves the house, so she changed her attitude towards Concubine Qing?

She later found out about Xiao Shiwu's poem dedicated to the Empress Dowager.The Empress Dowager also just said that King Luo Bin was called a child prodigy when he wrote "Ode to the Goose" at the age of seven, but the younger fifteen was only six years old, and his real age was only four and a half years old. He was able to write "Ode to Dragon Well", which is worse than King Luo Bin Good luck!
But she felt that there must be fraud in this matter!

A four-and-a-half-year-old child has not officially entered school yet, so why can he write poetry?

Although she doesn't know much about Chinese poetry, she has also heard that the poems written by Xiao Shiwu are very neat, rhyming, and antithetical!
Bah, she didn't believe it!

It must have been taught by Wei Wanxi and Lu Yuqin, the two Han people, and it is very possible that they wrote it for themselves!

In the end, it's just a quarrel, trying to find ways to make that little Shiwu win the empress dowager's favor!

Besides, if Xiao Shiwu wants to write poems, what kind of poems are not easy to write, but he wants to write "Ode to the Dragon Well"... Hehe, what he sings is the stuff of the Han people in the south of the Yangtze River, and he is indeed of the Han people in his bones!
Nala's lips curled up slightly, pointing to the "Steamed Duck and Pork Rolls" on the dining table and said: "It's interesting today, why did the emperor forget that Concubine Rong is here, why did you use pork today?" ?”

She couldn't directly go against what the Empress Dowager said, so she first provoked Concubine Rong.

Wanxi's heart skipped a beat: Isn't that right, everything on today's table is appropriate, except for this one dish with pork.Eighty percent of the emperor really forgot, right?
The emperor smiled slightly, "Concubine Rong's reverence to the gods is not only respected by the harem, but I am also careful in everything. But there is only one exception in this world."

The emperor stood up himself and bowed to the empress dowager, "This dish was agreed upon by the empress dowager last time, so my son will remember it, and I will serve it up today."

Concubine Rong also smiled and got up and said, "The emperor is sympathetic, but in fact, I asked the dining room to ask my opinion last night. I also thought that since the empress dowager likes this, there is nothing I can't bear gone."

Nala's face suddenly changed.

What is this, this pretext has become a play of their mother's kindness, son's filial piety, and concubine's virtuousness? !

Nala couldn't help but sneered, "What Concubine Rong said is really sweet! I don't know, who taught Concubine Rong what she said today?"

Concubine Rong raised her eyebrows suddenly, "I dare to ask the empress, what do you mean?"

It was the time of Wushi's rebellion, and Rong Pin's nerves were the most tense, and it was the time when he couldn't listen to someone's eccentricity.

It's a pity that Nala wanted to talk about that, "If Concubine Rong wants to be so virtuous, I'd be surprised. Why are you people who return to the Ministry so ignorant? Back then, your two clan brothers rebelled, but the emperor forgave you." After you go back to the other Burkes in the Ministry, they will be promoted to ranks, and they will still be Burkes..."

"However, it's only been five years, and they failed to live up to the court's grace, which is the opposite! Concubine Rong, just from this incident, it is enough to see what you are all about!"

Concubine Rong blushed instantly in annoyance, and gritted her teeth and said, "The empress is like this, I am willing to repay the emperor with my life! I am today, and I will die in front of the empress in exchange for the honor of my family and me!"

Wanxi and Yuqin got up quickly, and blocked Rong Pin from left to right.

Concubine Rong was already crying, "Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, I beg you to make decisions for me!"

The empress dowager shook her head, and gave Nalashi a cold look, "What happened to the empress this morning? Did you eat something wrong before you came here?"

Nala couldn't help raising her eyebrows, staring blankly at the Empress Dowager.

Why?Why didn't that method work? Why did the old lady suddenly talk to her like that?

She went directly to Rong Rong like this, she actually had a bottom line in her heart, she believed that the spell would become more and more effective after these few days, the emperor and empress dowager should protect her!
The emperor also said coldly, "Empress, is this what you should say as a middle palace?"

But Nala didn't bother to reply, he just turned his head and stared at Dege.

what happened?What about spells?Why does it seem to be useless?
Dege shook his head in embarrassment... After all, she is an official woman, how can she often go out to meet the stonemason?
After finally persuading Concubine Rong to come, Wanxi hurriedly asked Yuchan to send Concubine Rong back to rest first.

There was a brief silence in the reef harp.

But this meal, no one is in the mood to continue to use it.

The emperor ordered to remove the dining table and bring tea. The emperor said quietly, "Your Majesty, you know, but something rare has happened in Beijing. The rosary was stolen from a shop in the trading street of Savatthi City. It is not an answer at all, but Involved in a matter that made my son dumbfounded!"

The Empress Dowager also heard about this, and the old lady was already reluctant to respond to such disrespect to gods and Buddhas, so she hurriedly asked, "What's the matter?"

The emperor lowered his eyes lightly, "The son didn't report to the Queen's Mother in time, but he really didn't want to let the Queen's Mother worry about it. It's just because it's a bit sinister."

The empress dowager stretched out her hand subconsciously, and Wanxi hurriedly handed it over to her, asking the empress dowager to support her.

The empress dowager nodded to Wanxi, took a deep breath and said, "This kind of disrespect to gods and Buddhas has already happened, what can be more evil? Tell me quickly."

The emperor lowered his eyes lightly, but said something that made everyone present tremble.

"...I heard that there are ghosts possessing people."
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Nala Shiben turned his head and stared at Dege, waiting for Dege's next words, when he heard the emperor's words suddenly, he raised his hand in shock and knocked over the teacup in front of him.

She was angry and refused to drink Longjing from Hangzhou, and she didn't even drink it according to the Han people's method, but insisted on drinking only milk tea.The tea bowls for milk tea are not made of porcelain, but gilded silver bowls.There was a bang, and there was a great commotion.

The emperor raised his eyes leisurely, and gave Nala a slight glance, "Look, isn't the empress the first to be frightened?"

Nala couldn't help but gritted his teeth, "I'm not that timid! It's just a coincidence, the emperor said it's the emperor's, I'll just drink my milk tea!"

The empress dowager was curious, and ignored Nala's reaction, she only urged the emperor, "You mean it. What kind of ghost possession has anything to do with the stolen rosary?"

The emperor turned his eyes slightly, "There are dozens of shops on the shopping street, and there are hundreds of items in that shop? Why did a rosary be stolen...Does the queen think it's weird?"

Nalashi was getting angry, so he sneered, and couldn't help but blurt out again, "Maybe some god or Buddha stole it for himself!"

The Empress Dowager immediately widened her eyes in anger.

The emperor was not annoyed, but asked with a faint smile in his long eyes, "How did the queen guess it?"

　521, the emperor's "love" followed by "love" to death...~~~~(>_<)~~~~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)