The prince is very fierce

The cold wind blew and the palace lanterns swayed.

It was just getting dark and the Imperial City was closed at midnight, which was around nine o'clock, so there was plenty of time.

Xu Buling entered the palace just for a formality, and had no intention of having a long conversation with the Queen Mother. He came out after a meal, and maybe went to Xianzhaizhi to buy some rouge and gouache.

It's not that Xu didn't ask him to use it. This afternoon he felt that something was wrong with Mrs. Lu. With Mrs. Lu's craftsmanship, it was impossible to make such an ugly robe for him to wear, and she had to take it out before he went to the palace to see the Queen Mother.

Although I don't understand the reason, judging from Xu Buling's experience, Mrs. Lu will definitely be resentful for several days afterwards, and it may be difficult to escape without some preparation.

While thinking wildly, Xu Buling dismounted his horse outside the imperial city. There was already a palace maid waiting outside the imperial city, with a chariot beside him.

Xu Buling handed over the horse to the palace gate guard, climbed on the steps and was carried by the eunuchs into the palace gate...

-----

The imperial city occupies one-fifth of Chang'an, and there are probably nearly ten thousand people living there including officials, maids, concubines, guards, etc. Naturally, it is impossible for the Queen Mother to live in the harem of Song Ji. Changle Palace is located on the east side of the imperial city. It is a separate palace complex, also known as the East Palace.

Changle Palace occupies a large area, but because the Queen Mother has no children, there are some shadows in the palace in the winter.

Compared with the palace corridors and bridges that look like leviathans, a palace maid of two or three on foot looks very small. From a distance, it is just a small dot moving slowly on the White Stone Avenue.

The tallest building in the imperial city is the Taihua Golden Palace, and on the eaves at the top of the Golden Palace, there is a thin old eunuch, with his hands folded and his sleeves half-squinted, like an auspicious beast carved on the roof of the Golden Palace, motionless.

After watching the chariot enter the Yongle Palace, the old eunuch in red robe disappeared silently at the top of the Golden Palace. After a few ups and downs, he came to the outside of the Emperor's Imperial Study Room and looked at the silhouette of the figure coming out of the window. Bow slightly:

"Your Majesty, Crown Prince Su has gone to Yongle Palace."

The light in the imperial study room was relatively dim, with only a green lamp burning in front of the imperial desk, and three sticks of incense burning under the portrait of the woman on the wall.

Song Ji, dressed in regular clothes, sat in front of the imperial desk, looking at a poem manuscript in his hand, with a little tenderness in his eyes, as if reminiscing about the past.

Hearing Eunuch Jia's voice, Song Ji came back to his senses, put down his poem manuscript, and said calmly:

"Come here as you come. My mother has never been in charge of the Xiao family, and she doesn't know much about government affairs. Maybe she just stayed in the palace for a long time and wanted to find someone to chat with..."

Eunuch Jia nodded slowly, hesitated for a moment, and said softly: "Concubine Xian and Concubine Shu also stayed in the palace for a long time..."

This is also a kind reminder.

The queen died of illness a few years ago, and Song Ji did not have a queen. Although there were two princes, the birth of the mother and concubine was not too good to have a queen, so she was considered a concubine. Concubines Xian and Concubine Shu came from prominent families. After giving birth to children, they could naturally be crowned princes and give reassurance to the courtiers, so that the civil and military officials of the court would not wonder who they should assist in the future.

It was a pity that Song Ji in the imperial study did not instruct Eunuch Jia to inform the two waiting concubines to go to bed. After a moment of silence, a soft voice suddenly came out:

"Ten years of life and death are vast, without thinking, and unforgettable. A lonely grave thousands of miles away, no place to talk about desolation. Even if we meet, we should not know each other, our face is covered with dust, and our temples are like frost... At night, I have a deep dream and suddenly I return home, and I am dressing up by the small window. We looked at each other without words, only a thousand lines of tears..."

Song Ji's voice was originally calm and thick, but now it had a bit of vibrato. By the end of the sentence, the sound was no longer audible, and only a faint sigh remained.

Eunuch Jia narrowed his eyes slightly. He had been with the emperor for many years, so he knew what Song Ji was thinking of. He was silent for a moment, bowed and sighed:

"Your Majesty, this poem is unique in the world."

"yes……"

In the imperial study room, Song Ji looked at the picture scroll on the wall with a calm face, tapped his fingers on the table, and remained silent for a long time before continuing: "She used to like poetry, but it's a pity that my poetry is mediocre, and I usually play the piano to others..." "

Eunuch Jia shook his head: "Your Majesty, please relax. This old slave has served three kings one after another. Some things have faded away over time. Hmm... The literary style of this poem is transcendent, but there is a bit of sadness in the lines between the spring and the autumn." Feeling, a bit petty, not like what a man would do..."

This statement can be regarded as persuading Song Ji not to fall into the sorrow of losing his wife. As an emperor, he is a loner, how can he miss the love in the world of mortals.

There was only a moment of silence in the royal study, and then Song Ji's voice sounded again:

"When I was drunk, I lit up the lamp to read the sword, and dreamed back to the battalion of blowing horns. Eight hundred miles away, my subordinates were burning, fifty strings were heard outside the Great Wall, and the soldiers were ordered in the autumn of the battlefield. ... Lu's horse was so fast, and his bow was like a thunderbolt. The king of the world was over. It was a pity that everything happened in vain... Isn’t this a petty thing?”

Eunuch Jia was stunned and stood under the window thinking for a long time: "Delu should be the name of a horse. I have never heard of such a good horse... Are these two poems written by one person?"

"On a poem manuscript, I'm afraid it is, but there is no name... These two poems alone are worthy of the word 'talented'. Is it possible that under my rule, there are still "pearls covered in dust" in Chang'an City? scholar?"

After Song Ji succeeded to the throne, he attached great importance to poor families, otherwise he would not have allowed the great scholar to hold a poetry meeting and personally taste the poems. It is difficult to get ahead in Chang'an City, but it is even more difficult to get ahead if you have real ability.

Eunuch Jia thought about it for a while: "There are hundreds of thousands of households in Chang'an, and there are countless people from all over the world who come to Beijing to seek fame. Since this person has handed in the poem manuscript, there is no news in the market. He probably wants to be famous, and is waiting for the Holy Spirit to open the gold. Look for him... Most of the hermits who are masters have this air. If they come to the door by themselves, they will feel that their status has been degraded. People who are really capable will probably have to come and invite him three or four times before they can leave the mountain. Otherwise, how can they be called masters..."

Song Ji chuckled lightly and said calmly: "How can I care about lowering my stature for a capable minister and famous person? I am afraid that this person has poetic talent but no practical knowledge, which will make me happy."

Eunuch Jia slowly shook his head: "There have been stories about standing up a pole for faith and buying horse bones with a thousand pieces of gold. Your Majesty sincerely invites people with real talents and practical knowledge, and people with great ambitions will naturally come to accept the invitation."

Song Ji thought about it for a moment, and quite approved of the proposal, and said:

"But tomorrow, after the court meeting is over, we will prepare a banquet for all the ministers. They will say that I have a good talent, Long Yan, and I am very happy. If I get to know that old man tomorrow, he will scold me for playing with things and losing my ambition. It shouldn't be like this for the sake of three poems." If you go to war, your reputation will spread..."

Eunuch Jia bowed his head: "No!... There are three poems?"

"Withered vines, old trees and dim crows, small bridges and flowing water, people's homes, the west wind and thin horses on the ancient roads. The sun sets in the west, and the heartbroken people are at the end of the world."

"Well... several of this person's poems vividly display the concept of "depression and lack of ambition". If it is really written by one person, his talent cannot be underestimated, but he may be a little older..."

"Jiang Ziya still worships the prime minister at an old age. Age is not a problem, but I am afraid that he has no real ability..."