Chaos in the Chu Palace

Chapter 97
There was a smile of unknown meaning on her face, and the expression in her deep eyes remained unchanged. Wan Hui couldn't understand what she meant, so she had to say yes respectfully, and urged the servant who carried the sedan chair to go quickly.

Concubine Yu Jing lived some distance away from the concubines in the harem, and the servants carrying the sedan chairs on both sides of Ouyang Ruo were sweating from exhaustion.After a meal, Ouyang Ruo saw the corner of the black eaves under the shade of tall pine trees.

The green ones are pine leaves, the white ones are snow, and the black ones are ordinary tiles.Ouyang Ruo couldn't help being surprised when he saw that under the shade of the mountain, the small house looked more like an ordinary residence.Looking at the winding stone-paved mountain roads leading upwards, she got off the chariot and helped Wan Hui to go up.Wan Hui hurriedly said: "Your Majesty is not fully recovered yet, how can you come down?"

Ouyang Ruo smiled slightly, looked at the servant who was panting, and said, "It's not easy to lift it up, let them rest. Besides, it's only because Ben Gong walks up in person that he looks sincere."

Wan Hui had no choice but to help her up, and Ouyang Ruo walked up step by step, but her body was too weak, and she had to rest for a while after walking a few steps, but fortunately, the steps were only a few hundred steps, and she finally reached the top.The field of vision suddenly widened, and one side of the courtyard was facing the ten thousand hectares of pine forest, and the cold wind carried the fragrance of the mountain forest.Ouyang Ruo immediately fell in love with this house huddled on the mountainside.The courtyard in front of the house faces many mountains, and the house lives against the mountain, which is small and elegant.Ouyang Ruo, Wan Hui and other palace officials stood in front of the court and straightened their clothes before ordering the maid to knock on the door.

Ouyang Ruo said to Wan Hui: "Auntie, have you ever posted a post?" Wan Hui nodded, "Don't worry, Madam, I won't disturb the concubine's meditation like this."

Only then did Ouyang Ruo nod, the door opened, and a court lady came out, looked at it and said with a smile: "It turns out that the distinguished guest has come, let the maidservant go in and report."

After speaking, he went straight in and left them outside.Although Ouyang Ruo was extremely tired, he was not annoyed.

After a while, the palace maid came out and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, come in, my concubine is drinking tea, it's the top-quality Yunsong Wuding, it's really time for your empress to come."

Ouyang Ruo smiled at her, helped Wan Hui's hand and went in.

This house looks small, but inside it is very spacious and winding, but you can also see a lot of elegant garden scenery, but the decorations on all sides are very ordinary.When I arrived at a small pavilion, I saw a graceful and kind old lady sitting on the table. In front of her was an old tea case.But her eyes are as gentle as the spring water in March. Just one glance makes people feel that the water is gurgling by, very comfortable and peaceful.

Ouyang Ruo raised her eyebrows and came forward to meet her, the old woman smiled slightly: "Sure enough, she is Rou Jieyu who is under great favor. She has a good appearance and a good temperament."

Most of her complexion has been damaged due to injuries, and it is impossible to talk about her temperament.

Ouyang Ruo was a little surprised by her praise, and smiled slightly: "The empress dowager is absurdly praised, and I am really ashamed to be a concubine."

Concubine Yu Jing smiled and pointed to the futon in front of her: "Sit down, look at your appearance, you must be recovering from a serious illness. It's hard for you to walk up."

Ouyang Ruo looked at his embroidered shoes that had been soiled by mud and snow, and suddenly realized.She saw at a glance that she was coming up the mountain road.Knowing that I was respectful when I came here, I didn't hesitate to praise him.

Ouyang Ruo took off her embroidered shoes, went up to the waterside pavilion, and said with a smile: "The concubine's description is haggard, which made the concubine laugh."

Concubine Yu Jing put a small purple sand teacup in front of her, and Wang Qianbi was quietly in the teacup, exuding a refreshing fragrance.

Ouyang Ruo took it and savored it slowly, only feeling that the tea fragrance was light and lingering, as misty and hard to find.Concubine Yu Jing saw that her complexion had faded but still could not reduce her appearance, she sighed slightly in her heart, and said with a smile: "How dare Aijia laugh at you, if Aijia was in your position, he might have died long ago. "

Ouyang Ruo raised her eyes and glanced at her, suppressed the look in her eyes, and said with a light smile: "If the concubine is a concubine, the stick will not fall on the concubine."

Concubine Yu Jing was taken aback for a moment before she chuckled happily.No matter how arrogant and domineering the former king and queen who died in rebellion back then, they did not dare to touch the members of the Cha family. Concubine Yu Jing still sits firmly at the head of the four concubines. Hundreds of times.Concubine Yu Jing looked at the people in front of her, and the admiration in her heart couldn't help bursting out. She was also very lonely after living alone for a long time.

She sighed: "Aijia likes you very much, now I understand why that kid also likes you."

Ouyang Ruo's hand trembled, and the boiling hot tea splashed on his body, bit by bit of tea fell on Fox Mao's body and disappeared instantly.

She looked at the court lady Gonghou below, corrected her complexion, bowed slightly and said, "The concubine must not speak like this. The concubine knows why the concubine was punished this time, and if she said that, the concubine is a sin." Damn dead."

Concubine Yu Jing didn't care much, she pushed back her left and right sides, and then turned her head to look at her, a trace of stability flashed in her gentle eyes: "You must not belittle Rou Jieyu, you are so beautiful, it is very natural for someone to admire you Yes. Why take this crime on yourself?"

Only then did Ouyang Ruo feel relieved: "Thank you for your advice."

Concubine Yu Jing looked at her, took back the teacup she had spilled, poured another full cup and put it in front of her: "Rou Jieyu didn't come here today just to see me, an orphan old lady who is dying. What's the purpose of coming?" Let's talk."

She has a graceful bearing, generous conversation, and her every move is full of everyone's demeanor.Ouyang Ruo's thoughts that had been planned for a few days disappeared without a trace at this moment, as if she couldn't bear to put his little thoughts in front of her, polluting the last pure land in the Chu Palace.

She hesitated for a while, and then said softly: "The concubine heard that the concubine is well versed in Buddhist principles, and would like to ask a few questions..."

Before she finished speaking, there was a man's voice below, with a little ecstasy and worry, calling out: "Auntie..."

Ouyang Ruo was originally sitting with his back to the door, but when he heard the sound, he turned his head in surprise, and saw a young man with handsome brows and eyes shining like cold stars, looking at her eagerly.

There was a trace of ecstasy in his eyes, and he went up to the water pavilion in a few steps.Like the wind, he came to Ouyang Ruo.Ouyang Ruo could only smell the faint smell of ink on his body, so she restrained her face and greeted him.

Third Young Master Zha's clear eyes dimmed for a moment, and then he became happy again: "I have seen my aunt, I have seen Rou Jieyu."

Ouyang Ruo moved aside calmly, even so, the long boy still sat beside her, very close to her.

Seeing this, Concubine Yu Jing smiled and said: "You monkey, didn't you get tired of seeing Ai's family in the past? Didn't you follow the rules when you have a distinguished guest today? You have really changed your temperament." After she finished speaking, she said kindly Glancing at Third Young Master Zha, he smiled at Ouyang Ruo and said, "It's a coincidence that you are all here today, but you won't leave until after lunch."

Ouyang Ruo originally wanted to stay and have a long talk with her, but now he interjected to find out what to say, but he didn't know how to say it.

Cha Sanshao skillfully took over the tea set from Concubine Yu Jing, made tea by himself, put a cup in front of Ouyang Ruo himself, and said, "Please, Rou Jieyu!" His eyes were shining, burning with youthful infatuation , Seeing that she has nothing to hide.

Ouyang Ruo was a little embarrassed, she thought for a while, and said respectfully to Concubine Yu Jing: "Since Concubine Yu Jing has a guest, I will come to see Concubine next time."

She was about to leave as she said that, and Third Young Master Zha was in a hurry, and stopped in front of her, and said with a little helplessness: "You really want to go."

After Ouyang Ruo recovered from his injury, his temperament changed a little. His heart turned cold, and he raised his eyebrows and said to him: "I have been beaten up and the pain is still there. How dare I try my best again? I hope the champion will not stop me. "

Startled by the coldness in her eyes, Young Master Zha took a step back.Concubine Yu Jing sighed: "Since Rou Jieyu finally came here, don't worry about leaving. Although this child is reckless, he has a good heart. Rou Jieyu is at ease."

Ouyang Ruo put away the coldness in his eyes, and then thought about it carefully, although the young man in front of him had unreasonable thoughts about him, he hadn't done anything out of the ordinary, and he came here this time because he had thought a lot about it. The decision I made, the next time I come, I may not have the courage to go forward today.

After thinking about it, she nodded slightly.Only then did San Shao heave a sigh of relief.Concubine Yu Jing saw that she was willing to stay, and said with a smile: "Ai's family, go and have a look at the back, and ask someone to add an extra pair of chopsticks, so don't starve my precious nephew." She seemed to love her little nephew very much, and the last sentence , was actually full of maternal love.

After she finished speaking, she called the maids, and they left with the help of them, only Ouyang Ruo and Cha Sanshao were left in the huge water pavilion.Ouyang Ruo looked up at him and sat silently.Third Young Master Zha sat beside her, and the red clay stove on one side made the water in the kettle sizzling, making the silence between the two of them even more apparent.

He sighed faintly: "You are too thin." There was a lot of pity in his tone.

Ouyang Ruo looked at her almost translucent palm and smiled coldly: "Thank you, Mr. Zhuangyuan, for your concern, I am very kind." She replied unceremoniously, full of alienation and indifference.Makes it impossible to interface.After she finished speaking, the two fell into silence again.

Ouyang Ruo saw that he was just staring at the boiling water, but didn't move. He didn't know what he was thinking, but after all, he had helped him, so he slowed down: "Thank you for the help, Mr. Cha, otherwise Liu Zhengsheng It will not be so easy to subdue the law."

He seemed to come back to his senses, saw her wry smile and said: "Speaking of it, your mother is still wise. If you hadn't ordered people to collect evidence outside, I would not have convicted her so easily."

Ouyang Ruo recalled Mrs. Liu Guo's eyes of resentment towards him, and smiled slightly mockingly: "Don't the champion think that my palace and harem interfere in politics, and the hands are stretched too far?"

Cha San Shao said: "The harem is originally inseparable from the imperial court. Your Majesty's move must have a deep meaning. Besides, Liu Zhengsheng's heinous crime is not considered to be a death in vain. Mrs. Liu Guo even embezzled money from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The emperor is still too merciful." Putting it in the previous dynasty, this is the crime of punishing the nine clans."

Ouyang Ruo looked at him in surprise when he heard the words. Under the official robe, his eyebrows and eyes were much more settled, not the flying and jumping of a teenager, but more mature and stable.I think it was just a few months of working as an official that gradually made him understand a lot.

It would be better to talk like this.

Ouyang Ruo smiled slightly: "The Cha family is considered a big family in Chu State. I wonder if the Cha family has any opinion on the emperor's policies?"

Zha Sanshao was startled when he heard the words, and looked at her suspiciously.

Ouyang Ruo pursed her lips and closed her eyebrows, only playing with the teacup in her hand, and said with a nonchalant smile: "As far as I know, there are four major families in Chu, the first is the empress Zhao's family, the second is the Li family in the army, and the third is the Li family in the army. Three is the royal family of Yongzhou, and your Cha family has gradually faded out of the court since the previous dynasty. It is your father, Duke Zha, who gave birth to three good sons. It is highly valued by the emperor. But your father's branch is the most prosperous, and the others...if I am not wrong in the investigation - they all went home to farm, right?"

She said the last sentence very bluntly, raised her long and distant eyebrows and looked at him with a sideways smile.

Zha Sanshao was shocked when he heard this.Indeed, his Cha family is one of the four great families that came from the founding of the Chu state, but after several generations, it has not improved much. Only his father's family has a little close connection with the royal family, so his father hates iron and steel to force him Step into career.The two eldest brothers were also driven away by their father early or became officials or soldiers.He worked hard with good intentions for the prosperity of the family and to reproduce the glorious history of the Cha family back then.

However, what special purpose does she have in telling him now?Zha Sanshao's heart fluttered and his mind was chaotic, as if he had grasped a glimmer of clarity, but also seemed unable to grasp her true intentions.

He squeezed the palm of his hand hidden under the official uniform, paused and said: "Your Majesty, just say what you want to say."

Ouyang Ruo slowly poured out the remaining half cup of tea in front of him, and said with a smile: "Now the Zhao family can be said to be prosperous, from the imperial court to the local government, from the army to the civil affairs, there are many important positions for it. The arrangement before he ascended the throne, but now it has become the biggest obstacle to his administration, just like this teacup, the emperor now needs another new kind of tea to fill it, and the entire court needs fresher blood..."

Third Young Master Zha's heart was beating faster and faster, his eyes were getting darker, and he said coldly: "Why do you think that what the emperor needs is our Cha family? Isn't our Cha family the stupidest person?"

Ouyang Ruo smiled slightly, stretched out his hand to fill his teacup, put it on his slightly pale lips and smiled slightly: "It's not that the emperor needs you, it's that this palace needs you to check the family. A third prince with pure blood, and a third prince with nothing Is Rou Jieyu from the background force enough for you, the Cha family, to rest assured of your allegiance?"

Her words were soft like water, but it was like the loudest thunder that blasted his heart blank.

"Miss Rou Jieyu is very strategic!" A slightly harsh sentence sounded behind the two of them.Ouyang Ruo's heart moved, and he slowly turned his head away, and Zha Sanshao looked nervously at the person coming.

Concubine Yu Jing's gentle eyes carried a look that Ouyang Ruo was most familiar with, as she walked up the steps step by step.

She stared closely at Ouyang Ruo's eyes, and suddenly smiled, so that the wrinkles on both sides of her brows and eyes were stretched out: "The Ai family has a lot of calculations, but I don't know that you have put so much thought into your visit today. Such a big heart It’s no wonder the current emperor favors you more and more.”

Ouyang Ruo smiled slightly, stepped forward to help her sit up, and said softly: "Concubine Yu Jing doesn't blame the concubine for being reckless, the concubine is very lucky."

Concubine Yu Jing took a deep look at her, but felt that the woman in front of her was hiding her secrets, so she talked eloquently just now, talking and laughing in the palm of her hand, but now she frowned and whispered and regained her weak and pitiful look.But there are ever-changing things, and they are all that peerless and isolated beauty, which does not make people feel hypocritical and abrupt.

Ouyang Ruo couldn't help lowering her head when she saw her shrewd and sophisticated eyes, and gradually became uneasy.Zha Sanshao was even a little restless, what Ouyang Ruo said just now, even if it wasn't enough to punish the nine clans, it was enough to beheaded.If the concubine is unhappy and tells the emperor, the consequences will be...

He hurriedly apologized and said with a smile: "Auntie, it was my nephew who picked up the topic just now, Auntie, don't blame Rou Jieyu for it."

Concubine Yu Jing gave him a cross-eyed look with a half-smile: "You monkey spirit, if you're making a fuss, why didn't you come out to take the autumn test earlier? Your father insisted on getting sick from anger and whipping you more than a dozen times before you would go." Kao? You don't have this idea at all in your heart. It seems that the century-old glory of the Cha family is going to be ruined by our generation."

She sighed softly, and Ouyang Ruo's heart moved when she heard the words. It seems that the concubine of the previous dynasty also married into the palace with this intention, but her luck was bad, and she never gave birth to a boy and a girl for the late emperor.Naturally, old age and fading can't make waves, but now, I don't know if my proposal, which is so bold as to be absurd, will be accepted...

Ouyang Ruo bowed her head in thought, Concubine Yu Jing smiled slightly, and suddenly said: "Rou Jieyu is courageous and resourceful, and also knows how to plot people's hearts, naturally she is not considered reckless."

When Ouyang Ruo heard this, he was overjoyed.Sure enough, this risky attempt gave her better results than expected.

After Concubine Yu Jing finished speaking, Third Young Master Zha whispered worriedly: "Auntie, this is a big matter, but it needs to be discussed in the long run."

Ouyang Ruo just sipped tea quietly, she knew that she must not interrupt at this time.

Concubine Yu Jing heard what Cha Sanshao said, she smiled confidently and said: "Don't worry, you go back and tell your father that your father will secretly negotiate with a few old people in the clan, Aijia guarantees that they will agree. It's just that people plan things, but heaven makes things happen, Rou Jieyu, as a disused concubine of the Hua Kingdom, how can you guarantee that the third prince will become a great treasure in the future?!"

Her last sentence was a question to Ouyang Ruo.Ouyang Ruo raised her eyes when she heard the words, and saw a stern look in Princess Yu Jing's eyes. Her kind appearance could no longer conceal her sharpness honed in the court, and her whole person looked more majestic and dignified.

Ouyang Ruo's heart tightened, knowing that this is the most critical time, if he can't convince her finally, I'm afraid his plan will be difficult to carry out one step further.

She looked directly into Concubine Yu Jing's eyes generously, and smiled slightly: "Although this concubine has been falsely accused of having an affair with General Su, but the empress acted too hastily, she immediately fell into trouble and almost beat the concubine to death, the emperor has already half believed it However, the other half felt more pity for the concubine who was beaten innocently. The concubine pleaded guilty twice, but the emperor couldn't bear to punish him. It can be concluded that the emperor has not blamed the concubine for a long time. Therefore, the situation of the concubine seems to be in a downward position everywhere, but in fact it has long been It is No.1 in the heart of the emperor."

"The eldest prince has always been disliked by the emperor. Even though he is being raised by the empress now, the emperor once said, 'This son may just be an idle king'." As a warning, I am afraid that there will be a second king and queen, so I am more wary of the queen Zhao, so it is unlikely that the eldest prince will be the heir apparent.Compared with the third prince, Lin's son has a better chance of winning than the eldest prince, but the emperor doesn't like Lin's cowardice.The third prince has been taken care of by the emperor himself since the accident of his concubine, and asked which prince among the princes raised in the harem can be taken care of by him personally?This is the truth, the concubine is in the mountains, but her heart is like a mirror, so she has another brilliant opinion. ""The concubine and the empress Zhao have a hatred of seizing their sons and killing them with a stick. She will not allow the concubine to live, and the concubine can't sit and wait for the person who is a mermaid.Therefore, please support the Cha family, and when the third prince grows up smoothly in the future, if one day becomes a great treasure, the concubines need the Cha family to sit in the court and stabilize the country of Chu! "

After she finished speaking, Concubine Yu Jing nodded again and again, and Third Young Master Zha showed admiration in his eyes.Ouyang Ruo sat for a long time and expended a lot of effort, her complexion was already pale as snow, and she just tried to hold on and dare not fall down. She pinched her palms hidden in her wide sleeves, and her inch-long nails were embedded in the flesh, causing a moment of pain. She was sober, her eyes were burning, and her whole body burst out with strong self-confidence.

Concubine Yu Jing said with a smile: "Okay! Rou Jieyu is indeed a heroine among girls! The Ai family hasn't seen a person like you for a long time, and the days will be long. In the future, Rou Jieyu will come and talk to my old woman more often, and talk about Buddhism. It is."

(End of this chapter)